Right Hand Man, What Happened Next
by can08writer
Summary: Negan needs to teach Rick a lesson, and knows just how to get to him. This is what happens directly after the Season 7 premiere clip "Right Hand Man". Contains strong language!
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's note:_** **** ** _This is my first ever one-shot, if you read my fics you know I'm a multi chapter person, but this scene just hit me and I had to write it out. This takes place directly after the season premiere clip "Right Hand Man", and explains what happens right before that clip. Can't wait until the season 7 premiere. Just a week left!_**

"I'll be right back," Negan said to the horrified people who were still kneeling and sobbing, "maybe Rick will be with me. And if not? Well we can just turn these people inside out won't we? I mean, the ones that are left!" Negan called, before throwing Rick into the RV and slamming the door behind him.

Rick was in shock about how quickly Negan was able to drag him across the ground and into the RV after Rick explained to Negan he would kill him. This man was much stronger than he seemed, and from the murders that Rick just witnessed, the man was vicious.

Negan had chosen Abraham to die for the group, during his Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Mo song. Right after Abraham's head was beaten to a pulp, Daryl leaped from his spot on the ground and went after Negan, trying to strangle him. Negan quickly subdued Daryl and pressed a boot to his neck, to the point where Daryl almost lost consciousness. Right before Daryl was out, Negan removed his shoe from his neck, and ordered the men to strip Daryl naked in front of his helpless family members. They then tied his arms and legs together into a hog tie and left him naked on the ground. Daryl, who was too incapacitated from his gunshot wound and his skirmish with Negan, laid on the ground motionless, totally and completely at the mercy of the Saviors.

Negan watched the expressions of everyone who was on their knees. Maggie and Michonne had Abraham's blood dripping from their faces and hair, and tears were pouring down their cheeks. Rosita had thrown up on herself, and Sasha had fallen to the ground in a heap and was crying hysterically. Aaron, Eugene, Rick, Carl and Glenn were also crying, but doing a slightly better job of holding themselves together. Rick had gotten sprayed by Abraham's blood as well, and had a large splotch of red splashed across his face.

"I gave you a fucking warning, that I wouldn't tolerate that shit" Negan said, staring at Daryl. "I would kill you, but it seems to me that's what you wanted. Suicide by Negan" he said with a smirk. "So you're not gonna get the punishment you so desperately wanted. Oh, you will be fucking punished, believe that. But I have something so much better planned for you." Negan gave Daryl a winning smile as he stared him down coldly. Negan's eyes then wandered over to the people who kneeled shaking before him.

"One of you is gonna get the punishment that this fucker wanted so badly" Negan said, taunting them with Lucille once again.

"No!" Daryl screamed "No please! Please! It was me!"

"Oh yes it was you" Negan said, laughing. "And now someone else is gonna fucking pay"

Negan stood in front of Glenn and lifted Lucille. "You!" he said, and without warning he slammed the bat into Glenn's head.

"Mag… Maggie" Glenn called, even with half of his head smashed in.

"Shit that's nasty" Negan taunted Glenn, "you should see yourself, half your head is cracked open like an egg and you're still fucking talking." Negan then continued until Glenn's head was a beaten pulp in the dirt just like Abraham's.

"Nooooo!" Maggie roared. She screamed so loudly that the stress and shock finally took their toll on her already weakened body and she passed out.

Daryl was crying hysterically on the ground with his face planted into the dirt. Negan nodded to his men and they lifted Daryl up by his tied arms and legs, and literally threw him into the back of a van. Maggie, Michonne, Eugene, Carl and Aaron were all now sobbing loudly. Rick just looked on in shock. And that was when Rick told Negan that he would kill him.

Now, Rick was on the floor of the RV as Negan stood over him holding Lucille. "Let's have a little fucking chat about what you said out there" Negan said to Rick, slowly lowering himself onto the RV's couch with a sigh, as if he were going to have a one on one chat with his son.

"You threatened my fucking life, in front of my fucking people. In front of your fucking people too. That is not cool Rick. So not fucking cool. I'm trying to decide if you are fucking retarded in the head, or if you are really trying to kill some more of your people out there. 'Cuz common sense would tell you to keep your fucking mouth closed".

Negan paused for a moment and stared at Rick who hadn't moved from the spot on the floor where Negan had thrown him.

"You and that motherfucker hog tied in the van right now. Both of you seem to have something to prove. Now I'm gonna take him with me 'cuz I'm fascinated to see how long it would take to break his dumb ass, but you… I think I might have you figured out already."

Negan smiled again at Rick. "You know much about farming Rick?" Negan asked, "you know about livestock?"

Rick didn't answer, having no idea where Negan was going with this. Negan looked Rick up and down. "You look like you might. You look like a fucking country boy. But I'll tell you anyway. You can only have one bull in the pen at a time. The bull is the boss, and he will fucking kill any other bull that gets in his way. Now, you can have other steer in the herd though. You know what a steer is Rick?"

Rick remained silent.

"Fucking answer me Rick" Negan said, staring at him dangerously.

"Y-yes" Rick said, inwardly hating that he stuttered.

"I thought you did. A steer is a bull with no fucking balls. And since he has no fucking balls, he aint going around fucking the bull's cows. Now you can have other steer in the pen, but if you have two fucking bulls in the same pen, they will fucking kill each other. Now, you were the bull in your fucking pen for too fucking long. And a bigger, more badass bull, from a bigger more badass pen is taking over." Negan leaped off the couch and grabbed Rick by the collar of his murder coat. "Either you become a steer, or I will fucking kill you. Understand?" Negan asked.

Rick's eyes widened but he still glared at Negan defiantly.

Negan sighed and rolled his eyes. "Still don't fucking get it?" he asked, extremely annoyed at Rick. Suddenly a dangerous smile spread across Negan's lips. "Oh!" Negan said as if something finally clicked in his head. "This is rich. You got a cow in the herd huh?" Negan asked. "You wanna show off for one of the ladies?".

Negan yanked Rick to his feet and threw him against the window of the RV, pressing him against the glass. "Which one is it Rick? Which one is your girl?"

Rick could see his family still kneeling, looking on terrified as he got pressed against the window by Negan. He tried not to look at Michonne or Carl. He didn't want to give it away. "You know, the way to a man's heart is through his pussy. Which pussy is yours Rick? Is it the hot little Mexican over there? The one who threw up on herself? Or is it the one with the dreadlocks with snot and shit running down her face. I know it ain't the brunette who passed out. The Chinese kid pretty much claimed her ass. And the one who's curled up on the ground, she definitely belonged to the jolly red giant. So it's between Mexico and Jamaica Rick. Who are you fucking?"

"Fuck you" Rick muttered, and Negan punched him in the back, and slammed his head against the window again. "Oh Rick, Rick, Rick. I can tell I'm gonna have fun with you, but between me and you, you're not very smart. I was gonna chop your hand off, but I still don't think that'll break your fucking stubbornness. As a matter of fact, these people might respect you more. But uh… messing with your pussy… that might do the trick…"

"No!" Rick yelled, before he could stop himself. "No please. I'll do whatever you want. Please."

"Uh uh uh Rick. It's too late for that now. You had every opportunity to be a good boy. Now you're gonna have to pay. Be thankful it's not your son. If you say anything. ANYTHING. While this is happening, I will cut off the serial killer's arm. Got it?"

Negan grabbed Rick by his collar again before he could answer, and dragged him out of the RV. Everyone who was still alive and conscious looked up. Rick tried his best not to look at Michonne, but he couldn't help glancing in her direction quickly. She was on her hands and knees covered in blood, but when Negan emerged from the RV she stood up on her knees again, standing tall. Rick was so proud of her. He glanced over at Carl who was kneeling the same way Michonne was, despite the tears pouring from his eyes.

Negan threw Rick face down in the dirt and put his foot on Rick's back to keep him there. "Bring that one over here" Negan said, pointing to Rosita. Rosita looked at Negan in terror as Dwight grabbed her shoulders and pushed her towards Negan. Negan took Rick's hatchet out of his belt and pointed it in Rosita's face.

"Hello sweetheart" Negan said, in his sultry southern accent. "Now I asked Rick a question in the trailer, and he wouldn't give me an answer. But maybe you could be much more helpful. Now if you answer truthfully, I promise I won't hurt you. But if you lie to me, It'll make me _very_ angry." Negan said in a low deep voice. "Do you understand?"

Rosita swallowed and then nodded slowly.

"Good. First of all, what's your name honey?" Negan asked, softening his voice.

"Rosita" she whispered.

"Rosita. That's a beautiful name. Now Rosita, I know Rick is fucking one of the ladies here."

Rosita's eyes popped open and they went from Negan to Rick and back to Negan.

"Yes. Yes he is. Is it you?" Negan asked.

Rosita opened her mouth and then closed it again. She looked stunned. She looked at Rick again who was staring at her with a face that she couldn't decipher. She didn't know if she should say yes or no. She didn't know what to do.

"Tell the truth Rosita." Negan prodded.

"N-n-no" she stuttered.

A smile then danced across Negan's face and he quickly glanced over at Michonne who was staring at the scene, trying her hardest to hide any expression on her face.

Negan quickly reached out and grabbed Rosita, startling her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and turned her to face the rest of the family. She shook in terror. Negan leaned in to her ear and said in a loud whisper "Y'know, I believe you Rosita, and I think you're telling the truth. So if he isn't fucking you, tell me who he is fucking."

Rosita was shaking. She looked at the ground and cried "I… I don't…"

"Don't tell me you don't know" Negan prodded, staring right at Michonne. "I told you if you lie it would make me very fucking angry. Who is it?"

Rosita bit her lip and continued to shake. She didn't want to betray Michonne, but she also wanted to live. She looked up at Michonne with a pleading look, and before Rosita could say anything and betray her, Michonne stood up from her kneeling position.

Negan, who was already staring at Michonne, smiled. He pushed Rosita away from himself, causing her to fall to the ground. "Thank you Rosita, go back to your spot now" Negan said. He then beckoned for Michonne to come closer with one finger. Michonne stayed in her spot and didn't move. Rick, who was still laying on the ground under Negan's boot watching the whole scene stared at Michonne, but for Carl's sake he stayed quiet like Negan had said.

"Come here sweetie" Negan said out loud, since his beckoning didn't work. Michonne didn't move a muscle as she stared Negan down. Negan grinned widely.

"Oh yes, this is definitely the pussy I've been looking for." Negan laughed. "You don't come here right now, and I chop off Rick's hand."

Michonne tensed up and her eyes shifted to Rick who stared at her pleadingly. His eyes shifted over to Carl and she immediately knew that Rick wasn't fighting back because Negan had threatened Carl. She slowly stepped forward.

"What's your name sweetheart?" Negan asked in the same sultry voice he used on Rosita.

Michonne struggled with herself about whether she would answer or not, but if Carl's life was in danger she'd tell Negan what he wanted to know.

"Michonne" she said in an even voice.

"Michonne" Negan repeated, "What a lovely name. Michonne, how long have you been fucking Rick?"

Michonne's eyes widened with Negan's intrusive question. Her hands balled into a fist and she wanted to punch him so badly her knuckles itched, but she was skilled in the art of keeping her cool, and no matter how much Negan wanted to embarrass her and Rick, she wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"Two weeks" she said in the same even voice.

"Wow. Been fucking him for two weeks you say?" Negan repeated loudly, causing his men to laugh and Carl's eye to narrow to a slit.

"He any good?" Negan asked.

Michonne gave Negan a dangerous smirk. "If he wasn't, I wouldn't be _with_ him"

Negan and his men all chuckled. Negan looked down at Rick who wasn't hiding his rage as well as Michonne. Rick's fists were clenched so tightly they were white, and he was trembling.

"Rick, I like this girl. I can see why you're with her." Negan looked back up to Michonne. "Are you afraid of me Michonne?" he asked.

Michonne stared into Negan's eyes. "I'm only afraid of what I'll do to you if you hurt Rick."

Negan stared back. He took his foot off of Rick's back and said "stay" as if he were speaking to a dog. He then stalked over to Michonne who's gaze never left his eyes. He stood in front of her so closely that their chests were practically pressed together. "What'll you do to me?" Negan asked in a soft whisper.

"Hurt him and find out" Michonne answered in an equally soft whisper.

Negan stared at Michonne for an uncomfortably long time. He had never met a woman like her. One that challenged him so openly and showed no fear. Unlike Rick's defiance, hers wasn't bothersome, it was fascinating, different. It turned him on immensely. He reached out his hand to grab her wrist, just to touch her, just to see what she would do, and she snatched her wrist away quickly, glaring at him.

Negan turned around and looked at Rick who's face was red and who was physically shaking in anger, but who still laid on the floor where Negan told him to stay. Negan knew he finally cracked Rick's defiance.

"Oh Michonne, Michonne. I like you, I really do. Unfortunately, your boyfriend likes to be a hard ass, and you're gonna have to pay for some of his mistakes. Now there's a lot of things I'd like to do to you, and killing you is at the absolute fucking bottom of that list. Still on it though."

Negan circled Michonne and stood behind her so that both of them were facing Rick. Negan smirked at Rick before leaning in and smelling Michonne's hair. He then reached around and grabbed one of her breasts. Michonne jumped and moved to elbow Negan in the stomach and stopped herself mid punch, letting her arm drop to her sides. Carl's life was more important than her honor. Rick turned away. He knew if he looked he wouldn't be able to control his actions. Carl on the other hand screamed "Get your fucking hands off her!". He leaped from his spot and prepared to run towards Negan when Dwight grabbed the back of Carl's shirt, causing him to fall backwards and hit the ground.

"Stay down kid" Dwight whispered to Carl.

Negan ignored Carl's outburst and leaned over to kiss Michonne's cheek. "Mmm… you taste like vanilla Michonne" he chuckled, "even after being covered in blood and sitting in that van for a whole day. Imagine how you taste after a shower. Rick you sure are a fucking lucky son of a bitch."

Negan searched Rick's face for a glare of defiance, or any sign that he was going to move from his spot, but Rick just stayed face down on the ground. Negan circled Michonne one more time, checking out her butt as she stared ahead stoically. Negan then made his way over to Rick. He kicked him in the stomach once, and then dragged him to his feet.

"You fucking listen to me. I own you and everyone in your fucking group. Remember, I'm the bull, you're the steer. You decide you wanna grow some balls and challenge me, and I will fucking kill you. You got away lucky today. Lucky I didn't kill your boy or your pussy. But you mess up one time, just once Rick, you give me a drop off that's too light, or you decide to give me some attitude, and one of them is gonna fucking die. You will call me sir, and anytime I show up at your fucking door you will open it and kneel to me. Got it?" Negan demanded.

Rick swallowed and whispered "Yes sir".

"I didn't fucking hear you. Did you hear him?" Negan asked the men gathered around.

"Nah I didn't hear him" someone shouted.

"Me neither" another one joined in.

"Speak the fuck up" Negan growled at Rick.

"Yes sir" Rick said loudly.

Negan smiled, staring at Rick a little longer. He then pushed him to the ground. "Let's go boys, wrap it up, we're done here" Negan called to his people. He then turned to Rick's group. "Go home, get yourselves together, and start gathering my stuff. I'll be visiting you in a week for my first pick up." He then turned to Michonne and winked. "See you then".


	2. Chapter 2

**_Author's note_** ** _: Ok, so I was definitely only planning on this being a one shot, but so many people asked me to continue it that I couldn't resist. I don't know how many chapters I'm going to make this, but there are a few scenes that I do want to play out, so we'll see what happens. I don't think it's going to be a complete story, but if you want to read a story that plays out completely and ends in a war with Negan, read my first fic, Bargaining Chip. Thanks for reading, and please write a review, tell me what you think._**

After Negan spoke the words that they could leave, he turned around with a smile on his face, hopped into an SUV and left with a few of his men. The other men began packing up whatever equipment they'd brought to the desolate clearing in the woods, and began to hop in cars and drive off as well. There was a flurry of movement, all except the traumatized members of Rick's group.

Simon, Negan's right hand man, came up to Rick. "Sun's coming up soon, best if you get going on your way. You're going to Hilltop right? For the sick woman?". There was no answer, but Simon continued. "Yea you shouldn't stay at Hilltop too long. I have a feeling your people back at Alexandria may need you."

Rick's head shot up at that statement. Simon flashed a smile and then strolled off to sit in the front passenger seat of the van that Daryl had been thrown into. Within minutes all of the Saviors had driven off, leaving Rick's group still kneeling or laying on the floor, surrounded by the blood and brain matter of Abraham and Glenn.

"Let's… let's go" Rick breathed out, not even recognizing his own voice. He pushed himself to his feet. Eugene and Carl grabbed Sasha under her arms and pulled her to her feet. She had stopped sobbing out loud but she seemed to be in some sort of catatonic state. As they dragged her towards the RV her legs moved of their own accord, but her eyes were unfocused and she wasn't responding to anything. Rick, Carl, Michonne, and Rosita gently lifted an unconscious Maggie, purposely avoiding looking at the battered bodies on the ground. They carried her to the SUV, laying her back into the bed. Rick then exited the RV again, and forced himself to look at his two friends that were laying on the ground. He quickly averted his eyes when he found a sob coming to his throat. He tried to wipe away the tears but they began to stream down his face anyway.

He heard the trailer door open, and he attempted to wipe the tears away one more time, when he felt two soft arms wrapping themselves around him from behind. The comfort he felt in those arms led to an immediate stab of guilt.

"Not here" Michonne whispered in his ear gently, she sounded as if she were saying it out loud for her benefit as well. "We…we can't".

Rick nodded. "We need to wrap them up" he said, wiping his tears on his sleeve. Michonne held out two sheets she had taken from the RV. Silently they walked over to Abraham first, both of them not looking at his bashed in head. They spread out a sheet and draped it over Abraham. They heard the RV door open, and Carl, Aaron, and Eugene emerged from the vehicle. Without any words spoken, they tucked the sheet underneath Abraham's body and all five of them carried him inside. They immediately emerged from the RV, repeating the process with Glenn. As they re-entered the vehicle, Rosita said "I moved Sasha into the room with Maggie… so she wouldn't have to see… it."

Rick nodded at the two bodies that were laying on the couch and the floor of the RV. Rick climbed into the driver seat of the RV with Michonne riding shotgun as they pulled off and sped towards the Hilltop.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 _Three hours later_

The group had traveled to the Hilltop in stunned silence. When they arrived, they quickly rushed Maggie and Sasha (who was still unresponsive) to Dr. Carson. They had stayed long enough to find out that Maggie's baby was still alive, but both she and the fetus was in obvious distress and she'd have to stay. Dr. Carson had given Sasha an anesthetic to allow her to get some sleep, as she was obviously in some sort of psychological state. Aaron stayed to keep an eye on the two women, and the rest of the group immediately headed back out, Simon's words urging Rick along. " _Yea you shouldn't stay at Hilltop too long. I have a feeling your people back at Alexandria may need you_."

Once again, no one spoke during the ride back to Alexandria. There was no crying, or comforting words, or angry words. It was just silent. As they rode up to the gates of Alexandria, Rick's stomach dropped. The gate was riddled with bullet holes, and a truck had smashed into one of the panels in the gate. The truck hadn't made it through, but that part of the gate was definitely unsteady, and another hit from a vehicle could send it crashing down.

"What happened?" Aaron asked aloud.

Rick stopped the RV, grabbing his gun as he raced to the gates. The only thing he could think of was Judith.

"Gabriel!" Rick screamed, "Gabriel open the gates!"

Rick could hear a rustling from behind the gates, and after a minute they were moved back just enough for a head to peak through.

"Rick!" Gabriel said cheerily, pushing the gates open and unlocking them. "Gabriel, what the fuck happened? Were we attacked? There's a truck crashed into the gate!"

"Everything is handled Rick. Judith is safe. We were attacked by a group of men, probably about 30, but we held them off. Probably those big bad Saviors. They demanded we open the gates and when we didn't it turned into a fire fight. They tried to crash a truck into the gates but they didn't succeed in breaching our defenses. We prevailed Rick, we had them running for the hills. You were right."

"No!" Rick yelled, causing Gabriel to look at him startled. "No, I wasn't right. I was so wrong. I was wrong. We didn't win any fucking thing. If anything, we pissed them off more."

"But Rick, they're gone!" Gabriel said, completely confused by Rick's reaction. "No, they're not." Rick revealed. He turned back to the RV where he knew Michonne was watching from the passenger seat, and motioned for her to drive the RV into Alexandria.

"We need to have a meeting" Rick explained, "Tell everyone to meet at the church in an hour."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The meeting was brutal. Rick had to explain to the people of Alexandria that they weren't safe. That they were all wrong. Negan was larger than they had even imagined, and the numbers of his followers greatly outnumbered Alexandria. There were at least 40 men in the clearing that night, and simultaneously there were at least 30 men attacking Alexandria. That confirmed that their numbers were at least 70 and probably much higher. Rick had to explain how and why Glenn and Abraham met their deaths, and where Daryl was. He had to explain where Sasha and Maggie were, and why everyone was covered in blood. He had to explain why the people of Alexandria now worked for Negan.

The townspeople didn't understand, especially after their apparent victory against the Saviors who came to the gates. They fought Rick's decision to appease Negan tooth and nail until Michonne shut them down. She had yelled at them that they weren't there and they didn't see what Negan could do. She asked them to trust Rick and everyone else who was in the clearing that night. She assured them that they weren't giving up, but until they learned more about Negan and his weaknesses, there was nothing else they could do but give in. It seemed that the people who were unconvinced by Rick's explanation of events, were convinced by Michonne's, and eventually the people quieted down and agreed to appease Negan, at least for now.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hey Carl, are you ok?" Rick asked as Carl walked past him in the kitchen. They had just come from the meeting and Rick hadn't gotten the opportunity to say anything to Carl yet. Carl didn't respond, ignoring Rick completely. "Carl?" Rick asked again.

"No!" Carl screamed. "No! I'm not ok. Negan killed Glenn and Abraham and you didn't do anything about it! He took Daryl! He fucking felt up Michonne right in front of you, and you just laid there and didn't do anything. You didn't even _say_ anything! You're a coward! He came and attacked our home, he crashed a truck into our gates! He can come and kill us at any time and we can't do anything about it. You failed! You were wrong and you put us in danger, and now he owns us. No, I'm not ok, you ruined everything and it's all your fault!". Carl then turned and ran out of the kitchen, nearly slamming into Michonne who was entering through the door. He stomped upstairs and slammed his room door loudly, shaking the entire house. Judy, who was sleeping upstairs suddenly started crying from the loud noise.

Rick stood staring in the direction Carl had gone with his mouth hanging open, apparently shocked. Michonne stood in the doorway of the kitchen, the same expression on her face. Judy's cries snapped both of them out of their shock. "Go get Judy" Michonne said softly, "I need to talk to him".

Rick just stood there, but Michonne turned and made her way upstairs to Carl's room. She knocked twice before opening the door. Carl was sitting on the edge of the bed with his back to her, his face hidden.

"Get out!" he yelled.

"No" Michonne said determinedly, closing the door behind her.

"Leave me alone, I don't want to talk" he growled.

"I know. But we're talking." Michonne said, making her way over to Carl. "The way you just spoke to your father. That is not ok."

"But he…" Carl started.

"Hey!" Michonne yelled, in a stern voice that Carl had never heard her use before. Her tone instantly quieted him, and he turned to look at her.

"I know you're pissed, you have every right to be. I know you're scared, and angry, and sad, and a bunch of other things. I KNOW. We all are. But you have no right to speak to him like that. No matter how angry you are. Your father loves you. He would die for you, and that theory was almost tested today. He would do it in a moment. He would do anything to keep you alive. You wanna know why he just kneeled there? Why he didn't say anything when Negan was doing all that shit? He was thinking about _you_ Carl, _your_ life. You've seen him do anything he had to do to keep you alive. You've seen him rip a man's neck out with his teeth. But sometimes being strong and protecting the people you love means not fighting. Sometimes that means being humiliated and beaten, and _not_ being a bad ass."

Carl just stared at Michonne, his eye widening in realization of what had happened between Negan and his father. "Negan told my dad he'd kill me. Right?" Carl asked softly.

Michonne didn't answer, but she sat on the bed next to Carl. "Carl, you know your father isn't a coward. He's the bravest man I've ever met. And it hurts me to see you call him anything less. I'm sure it hurts him more".

Carl looked down at the rug in his room for a moment. He rubbed a hand down his face, and then tears started to burst from his eye as he sobbed. Michonne wrapped both arms around him and pulled him to her as he buried his head in her neck.

"I'm sorry" he cried through his tears. "I saw the way Negan treated you. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to… I couldn't stop it. And dad just laid there and let him…"

"Carl it's not your fault. I'm ok. And I didn't do anything back to Negan either. It's not on you. I know you wanted to protect me, but me and your dad, we were trying to protect you. That's our job. I would do anything for you. I would die for you."

Carl started to cry harder, and Michonne couldn't hold back her tears anymore either. She let go, sobbing, as Carl held on to her doing the same. "I love you Carl" she whispered.

"I love you too Michonne" he said back, once he stopped crying enough to speak.

When the two of them had finished crying and dried their faces, Michonne said "I think you should go talk to your dad. He needs to know that you don't blame him for what happened. That you still trust him. He needs to know that Carl, especially tonight."

Carl nodded. "Yea, I'll talk to him".

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Michonne and Carl left Carl's room, Rick had taken Judy downstairs to the living room where he was pacing in circles trying to put her back to sleep. The little girl's eyes were closed and her little mouth was hanging open, but every time Rick stopped pacing she'd grab on to his shirt, preventing him from putting her down.

"Dad?" Carl called softly.

Rick turned around, still bouncing Judy as he stared at Carl's face.

"Dad I'm sorry about what I said before. I didn't mean it… well, not all of it. I didn't mean to call you a coward 'cuz I know you're not. And I know this isn't all your fault. I was just… I was so mad about what Negan did to Glenn and Abraham, and Michonne. And I realize now that you were trying to protect me. So, I'm sorry."

"Come here Carl" Rick said, motioning for him to come closer with his head. Carl moved forward, and Rick reached out with the hand that wasn't holding Judith, putting his arm behind Carl's neck. "I love you Carl, and the only thing I worry about is whether you, Michonne and Judith are breathing at the end of the day. Negan has beaten us down, but he _won't_ destroy us. He _won't_. I promise you that Carl. I will do what it takes to make sure you're safe, and when the opportunity arises, we will crush Negan. All of us together."

Carl looked up into Rick's eyes. "All of us?" he asked.

"Yes Carl. You're a man, and I would want no one else by my side."

Carl smiled.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was early morning when Rick, Michonne, and Carl finally got ready for bed. They were still covered in blood and looked an absolute mess, so taking a shower was a high priority. Rick and Michonne got into the shower in their room fully dressed. The water cascaded over both of their bodies and clothing, causing the caked on blood to run into the drain leaving streaks of red on the shower floor. This shower was unlike any they'd ever had. Usually, if the two of them were in the shower it quickly led to kissing, touching, and love making, but this shower had an air of death and sadness.

Once their clothes were fully soaked, and most of the blood had been washed down the drain, Rick turned to look at Michonne, but his eyes didn't reach hers. He reached over to her shirt and slowly moved it up and over her head, helping her to take it off. She reached down and undid her soaked belt and unzipped her jeans. Rick got on one knee so that she had his shoulders to hold on to, as she shimmied out of her wet jeans that were clinging even more tightly to her body. Once she was free from her wet clothing, she slowly undressed him as well, bending down to pull his wet pants off his legs and unbuttoning his shirt. They stood facing each other in their underwear. Michonne was staring into Rick's eyes, but he was avoiding hers. She grabbed both of Rick's cheeks and moved his head so that he couldn't help but look in her eyes.

"I'm with you" she said, "It wasn't your fault. You did everything you could. We're alive. We're still breathing, and I love you. Nothing can ever change that."

With those few words, she broke down Rick's walls. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him, pressing her up against him as hard as he could. She could barely breathe, but she knew he needed to feel her, and she needed to feel him too.

"I thought I lost you. When I realized that they had you. They stuck your hair and your vest on a walker. I thought you were dead. And then when they pulled you out of that van I was so relieved. But I realized that now you were here with me, and Carl. You were still in danger. And all I could think about was you and Carl. That was it. No one else. I realized, when it comes down to it. You, Carl, and Judith, y'all come first. Even before Daryl, and Glenn, and Maggie. Before _anyone_. When Negan picked Abraham, and then Glenn, all I could think was thank God it wasn't one of you two. And even when he called Rosita over, I thanked God it wasn't you. And then when he called you over…"

Rick cried softly, resting his head on Michonne's shoulder. "It's ok" Michonne said, stroking his hair.

He quickly pulled away from her. "No, it's not ok" he croaked. He turned his back to her, seemingly psyching himself up to say what he was about to say.

"Rick" Michonne called. He turned around again, his eyes red. He took a deep breath and then let it out. "When Negan called you over, I didn't know what he'd do to you. I was so scared. I thought I might lose you again, just when I'd found you again. But I knew I wouldn't move. As long as he threatened Carl's life, I wouldn't move. I would have sacrificed you for Carl" he admitted. "I'm a piece of shit. I _am_ a coward. I would sacrifice the only woman who has truly understood me. The only woman who has always had my back, always defends me, even raises my own children for me. I would have sacrificed you for him." Rick said, too ashamed to lift his eyes and look at her. There was a silence as the weight of what Rick admitted to her sunk in. The only sound was the tinkle of the water hitting the shower floor. Rick placed both hands over his eyes as he cried into them, fully expecting Michonne to get out of the shower. He jumped when he felt her hands on his, pulling them away from his face.

"You wouldn't've had to sacrifice me, because I would have willingly sacrificed myself. You did what a real father would do, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I would never respect you if you chose me over your child. _Never_. You are the kind of man that I've always wanted, and I wish you were Andre's father…" Michonne froze as she realized what she'd said.

Rick looked confused. He didn't know who Andre was, but from the look on Michonne's face he pieced the truth together.

"You had a baby" Rick said. It was more of a statement than a question. Michonne didn't say anything, but she was trembling. "Of course you did" Rick said aloud, pulling Michonne to him again. "I'm so, so sorry Michonne. I'm so sorry." Michonne let out a cry that Rick had never heard from her before. It was her turn to break down, as she let loose in his arm, crying for her son, but also because she had found a man that would have saved him, but she found him too late. Her cries rocked her body, and Rick could tell they came from somewhere deep inside, somewhere she hadn't exposed to the light of day in a long time.

Rick pressed his head into her hair. He would hold her as long as it took, as long as she wanted him to. This woman who understood every aspect of him, the good and the bad, and accepted him for who he truly was, for this woman he'd do anything.

She slowly stopped crying, but continued to press her head into his chest.

"I wish I were Andre's father too" Rick confessed, "and if you ever want me to be a father again, after we take down Negan, I will have as many babies with you as you allow. You're a wonderful mother. I heard what you said to Carl. I wasn't eavesdropping… I just came upstairs to get Judy. I don't deserve you. I don't. But I'm so glad you want me. I'm so grateful. I don't know why you do, but know I'm grateful for you every day Michonne. I love you so much. With all my heart. I've never loved anyone like I love you."

Rick's words brought fresh tears to Michonne's eyes, and she pulled her head back to look at his eyes. The expression that he gave her put no doubt in her mind that what he was saying was the truth.

"I love you too Rick" Michonne responded, pressing her lips to his. They shared a kiss and a warm embrace before finally removing their underwear and washing each other's bodies.

After they got out the shower, Rick pulled on a new pair of boxers, and Michonne threw on one of Rick's shirts and a pair of panties. They climbed into bed, ignoring the sun that was now shining through the cracks in the blinds. They turned and faced each other as they lay in each other's arms, not talking, but admiring the other. Just as they both began to drift off to sleep there was a knock at the bedroom door.

"Come in" Rick called. Carl poked his head into the darkened bedroom. "Um… I can't… I can't sleep. I was wondering if I could… can I sleep with you guys?" Carl asked. "Sure, come on" Michonne called, turning away from Rick and backing herself in closer to Rick to make room on the end of the bed for Carl.

Carl gingerly closed the door and climbed into the already crowded bed, turning away from Michonne. Michonne wrapped an arm around Carl's chest, giving him some security, and Rick moved in closer to Michonne, spooning her, his long arms resting on Michonne and Carl's arms. The trio laid that way for hours, none of them actually sleeping, but staying quiet in case one of the others fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Author's note_** ** _: I just had to get this chapter in before the premiere tomorrow. Not sure where I'm going with this story, but we'll see!_**

 _Two days later_

Rick had just finished up a meeting with a few other Alexandrians, planning out another set of runs to check out a previously unexplored town 70 miles away. They were going to stock up on more supplies in preparation for Negan's visit which was five days away. Rick was heading back to his house when the lookouts at the gates started yelling "cars!".

Rick sprinted towards the gates, trying to assess what was going on. He could hear the sound of car doors opening and slamming shut. "Who is it?" Rick yelled up to Spencer, who was standing on the look out post and had a better view. "Some men with guns. I think it's the Saviors. What should we do?"

"Stand down. I'm opening the gates." Rick said immediately. He wouldn't defy Negan again, at least not now. "But we outnumber them!" Spencer argued. "I said do it!" Rick snapped, and Spencer put his gun down.

Negan grinned wildly as he strolled up to the gates. Just as he reached them, Rick rolled the gates back and let him in.

"Rick!" Negan said with surprise, "I didn't even have to ask! How motherfucking nice of you. I guess you learned something from my little lesson huh?".

Rick didn't reply as he stared Negan down with hate brimming in his eyes. Negan looked Rick up and down as if he were waiting for something. "I know you didn't fucking forget what you need to do already?". Rick balled up his fists and he got to one knee and then the other. "Good boy" Negan said, patting the side of Rick's face. Rick snapped his head away but didn't move any further.

"Where's our girl Michonne?" Negan taunted. "I'd _really_ like to see her again"

"Why are you fucking here?" Rick growled.

"Um… I think you're forgetting a very important word, and you're starting to piss me off with me having to remind you how to act. Who the hell are you fucking talking to?" Negan asked, leaning into Rick's face as he towered over him.

"Why are you fucking here _sir_?" Rick asked, spitting out the word.

"Much, much, better Rick. Now since you asked so nicely, I'm here for a few reasons. One, my men reported that two days ago your fucking town fired at them when they showed up at the gates. Your people tried to kill my people…"

"Your people attacked my people!" Rick spat.

"Hey! I'm fucking talking here!" Negan said, grabbing Rick by the collar. "If your goal is to piss me off and get another one of your townspeople killed, you're about to meet it."

"No _sir_ " Rick said, calming down.

"Your people tried to kill my people after they were sent to collect what's mine. But no one was killed in the incident, and you didn't know the rules then, so I'll let that slide. It seems like you know the rules now though… more or less. You may have to be broken in a tad bit more. Two, I wanted to see how progress is going on collecting my shit. You don't seem to be too fucking busy, and that is worrying me quite a bit. And three, don't you want to know how your buddy is progressing? You know, the redneck?"

Rick's eyes widened at mention of Daryl. Of course he wanted to know how Daryl was, he worried about him every day.

"Stand up Rick. You're gonna take me and my men on a tour of this town, and maybe if you behave, I'll tell you what you want to know. Got it?"

Rick nodded and pulled himself to his feet.

"I can't fucking hear you Rick" Negan said.

"Yes sir" Rick mumbled, but he made it loud enough that Negan could hear him.

"Show me the pantry first"

Rick turned around and lead Negan to the pantry, where Olivia was on duty. Rick stood by and said nothing as Negan verbally assaulted Olivia, calling her fat, and accusing her of stealing food. Rick kept his head down, to Negan's satisfaction and Olivia's rage. Rick then led Negan to the orchards, where his men gathered bags full of apples, claiming their half of the fruit. As Rick passed his own house, on the way to the armory which Negan demanded to see, Michonne was just stepping off the porch with Judith.

As soon as Michonne saw Rick and Negan, she froze. Her eyes quickly darted back to the house and she was clearly considering quickly running back inside, but she realized she had already been spotted. She tried to inconspicuously move Judith to the side of her body facing furthest from Negan, and Negan noticed every move she made.

"Michonne! Sweetheart! Looking as good as ever. Rick! Doesn't Michonne look good?"

"Yes sir" Rick muttered, contemplating bloody murder.

"And who is this precious little girl?" Negan cooed, quickly closing the space between him and Michonne. Michonne's eyes flicked from Rick, to Negan, to the door she'd just come from. She didn't respond, still trying to assess the situation.

"I said, who is this precious little girl?" Negan asked Michonne again, this time his voice sounding colder.

"I… was just babysitting" Michonne said, getting a hold of herself.

Negan turned to Rick. "Hold Lucille, Rick" he said, holding out the bat.

Rick looked at Negan in confusion. "You want me to hold your bat?"

"Did I stutter?" he responded, "but you gotta hold her like a fucking lady. Don't be rough with her, she doesn't like to be handled roughly."

Rick's eyes flashed to Michonne in disbelief of the crazy request. Rick reached out and grabbed Lucille, seriously pondering if he wanted to end Negan right here and now.

Negan moved closer to Michonne. "I never thought I'd see a baby this age again. Whose baby is this?" he asked, staring into her eyes. "Her mother died" Michonne answered.

"Where's her father?" Negan asked, the wheels in his head turning quickly.

Rick looked white as a sheet, and Michonne didn't want Negan to look at him and immediately be tipped off to the situation.

"We all take care of her" Michonne offered, skillfully not answering the question.

"Let me hold her" Negan said, holding out his arms expectantly. If Michonne's skin had been a little lighter, Negan would've been able to see the color drain from her face. Michonne once again glanced at Rick who had raised Lucille to waist height, ready to slam it into Negan's head if he tried to do anything to Judith. Michonne then glanced back to Negan who was staring into her eyes, reading her reaction. She didn't have a choice.

She held Judith out to Negan and he picked her up, holding her out in front of him. "Hello little girl! You are so fucking cute!" Negan cooed. He then held Judith in one of his arms. "You know, my wives have been begging me to have babies with at least one of them, but kids are so much fucking work y'know? Gotta feed them, wipe their snotty noses, make sure they don't fuck up and get you all killed…" Negan turned around and smiled at Rick, and then winked. He noticed the tension in the way Rick was holding Lucille, and Negan smirked at him before turning back to Michonne. "Come walk with us Michonne. We can use the lovely company."

Negan began walking down the street and Michonne reluctantly followed, grateful that she was close enough to him to grab Judith if she needed to. Rick walked behind both of them, holding Lucille.

"Do you have kids Michonne?" Negan asked.

She shook her head no.

"What? You and Rick don't want any more? The serial killer looks a little bratty, and he seems like a loose cannon. Maybe you should have a second kid, a back-up plan y'know?". Negan chuckled at his own joke as Rick and Michonne both seethed in anger.

"Is there any place else you'd like to see?" Rick asked through clenched teeth.

Negan stopped walking and turned around slowly. "Excuse fucking me?" Negan asked in a dangerously low voice.

" _SIR_ " Rick growled, barely able to get the words out though his clenched teeth.

"I'll tell you when I'm fucking done Rick" Negan said, turning around. He then reached out and wrapped his right arm around Michonne, pulling her closer to him. Michonne's body clenched in disgust and she walked stiff as a board as Negan pulled her along, obviously trying to push Rick's buttons even more.

To make matters worse, Michonne spotted Carl coming from behind a house across the street. Her eyes widened in horror and she saw Carl's do the same as he noticed Negan carrying Judith, with his arm around Michonne, and his father walking behind them carrying the weapon that was used to kill Abraham and Glenn. His mouth dropped open in surprise, and Michonne shook her head slightly, begging him to just walk in the other direction. She could see different waves of emotion flit across Carl's face, but he finally backed behind a tree staying out of sight.

Michonne let out a sigh of relief. Negan, who had been talking about something and apparently had asked a question, looked down at Michonne. "So?" he asked. Michonne quickly realized she had to pay attention. "I'm… I'm sorry, what?" she asked. "I want you to come visit me at my home. I'm inviting you." Michonne now was giving Negan her full attention. "You want me to go to where you live?" She repeated. Negan smiled. "Yea, just for a little visit. I like you Michonne, I want to get to know you better. And I don't think I can do that with farmer Rick around."

Michonne was speechless. Her first instinct was to scream hell no and snatch Judith from his arms, but she knew she had to use her head. _What would be the benefits of this? One, we can get useful information about where he lives, how many people he has, and what type of weapons he has. Two, I can check on Daryl. Three, maybe I can get him to trust me enough to end him._

"I'll go, if you let Daryl come back with me" Michonne said confidently, looking Negan in the eyes.

"No!" Rick spat out before he could control himself.

Negan's head snapped to Rick's. "I'm talking to the lady here Rick. If you can't control yourself, you'll have to be punished. Or… more like your fucking _boy_ will have to be punished, so shut the fuck up."

Negan turned back to Michonne. "You are quite a bold ass fucking lady aren't you Michonne. I like it. I was actually gonna offer the redneck as a goodbye gift, but since you've mentioned it, yes, you can have him back. I mean, the pieces that are left at least… but it's something."

Michonne's eyes widened and looked to Rick, begging him not to react to Negan's purposeful baiting. She highly doubted he would severely injure Daryl and then give him back. She knew Negan was trying to see if Rick would react. Rick took a deep breath but said nothing.

"Thank you" Michonne said, causing Negan's eyes to widen. He didn't seem to expect that. He quickly covered his surprise with a grunt and continued to walk towards the gates. Thankfully, Judith started to get fussy at just the right time.

"Here let me take her" Michonne suggested, "She probably needs a diaper change."

Negan made a face and quickly pushed Judith into Michonne's arms. Using the opportunity to escape, Michonne shuffled off to get as far away from Negan as she could, glancing at Rick as she passed him.

Rick continued to follow Negan until he got to the gates. "Give me my girl" Negan called over his shoulder. It took Rick a few seconds before he realized Negan meant the bat. Rick handed Lucille to Negan, and Negan stroked it lovingly as he turned around and glanced at Rick.

"Kneel" Negan commanded, staring at Rick.

The rage started to rear its ugly head inside of Rick's mind, but he fought it down and kneeled for the sake of Carl and the rest of his family. Negan smiled. "So you _can_ be a steer Rick, all I have to do is grab you by the fucking balls! And by balls, I mean your family. You passed the test. Congratu-fucking-lations! Now if you keep on being a good little steer, you'll get your girlfriend _and_ the redneck back after she visits me. That is, if your girl _wants_ to come back here after she sees what I've got. That part is yet to be determined. Get up." Negan demanded.

Rick rose to his feet.

"Some of my men will pick up your girl three days from now and she'll spend the night with me. I'll bring her and the redneck back when I come to get my shit. And it better be ready. Just between me and you, I think you should watch little miss piggy over there at the pantry, if she eats some shit it better not be from _my_ half."

Negan stared at Rick's face, looking for any sign of defiance, but Rick looked downwards, avoiding eye contact.

"You understand me Rick?" Negan asked.

"Yes sir" Rick responded.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's note: Whew, what a Season premiere. I had to recover for a few days. But anyway, this is just a warning, I'm changing this story's rating to M for sexual content.**_

It was the night before Negan's men were coming to get Michonne. Michonne knew Rick was a mess inside. She knew he was terrified for her. And she knew there was nothing he could do about it. Rick had insisted on making her a dinner. He used every bit of his limited cooking skills to make some sort of tomato and pepper chili for her. It tasted awful, but the effort that he put into it almost made her cry. She, Rick, Carl and Judith sat down together with bowls of Rick's bland chili in front of them.

Michonne bravely put a spoonful of chili in her mouth and then just as quickly put her spoon down.

"Rick, hun, did you remember to season this?" Michonne asked as gently as she could.

He looked up quickly. "I was supposed to put seasoning? I thought the flavor from the tomatoes and the peppers would be enough."

Carl made a face. "That explains a lot" he muttered under his breath.

Michonne began to push her chair back to get the spices from the cabinet when Rick quickly leaped up. "No! let me get it. What should I grab?"

"Bring the salt, the pepper, the garlic, more chili powder, some thyme… I think we have basil flakes in there too" Michonne rattled off.

"It's that bad?" Rick asked.

Michonne looked at Rick sympathetically. "It's the thought that counts… right?" she asked. Rick let out a sigh as he went looking for the spices she had asked for.

Michonne looked at Carl who had put his spoon down as well. His head was hanging down and his shoulders were slumped. She knew he was thinking about her being brought to Negan's home the next day. She reached out her hand and held his. Carl looked up and met her eyes.

"How could you agree to go?" he whispered, "He can kill you. He'll try to hurt you."

Michonne sighed and nodded. "Carl I know you're scared. I'm scared too. But I don't think he'll hurt me. He likes to talk big, but even he has a moral code. If you follow his stupid rules, he'll do what he says he'll do. _And_ I have to go get Daryl."

"I know" Carl said, sighing again, "but look at what he did to you when we were kneeling in that clearing. He felt you up, he… he had his hands all over you."

"But he didn't hurt me. He's had two opportunities to do it already and he hasn't"

"I don't want him to get a third try at hurting you" Carl said, "you shouldn't go. You can tell them you changed your mind."

"Carl, do you think I have a choice?" Michonne asked.

Just then, Rick came back with the spices.

"I grabbed everything I could find" he said, dropping an armful of spices on the table. "I figured you could pick which ones you wanted."

Michonne smirked as she gathered Rick's, Carl's, and Judith's bowls and seasoned the chili for them. She then handed it back to them, and Carl took a tentative bite.

"Wow. What a difference." He said, giving a temporary smile before it quickly faded away.

"Now I know for next time" Rick said sheepishly as he put a spoonful into his mouth. Michonne could tell he was bothered that the food wasn't perfect. Michonne reached out and rested her hand over his.

"Thank you Rick, for trying. Thank you for making this for me" she said as sincerely as she could. He nodded, still looking into his bowl. The table was deathly silent as Rick and Carl both seemed to be in their own worlds.

Judy, who was oblivious to the tension, happily dug her hands into her bowl and smeared the chili on her face. She then sucked the chili off her fingers. Michonne looked at her and smiled. "What are you doing over there? Making a mess?" she cooed. Judy happily giggled and blew a spit bubble. Carl and Rick looked up at the happy baby who didn't have a care in the world, and she quickly pulled them out of their funk.

"Judy" Carl chided, "use your spoon! See?" he said, demonstrating to her how to eat. He reached over and placed a spoon in her hand, and she happily slammed it on the table as she sucked more chili off of her other hand.

"My wild girl" Michonne laughed, reaching over and attempting to dab some of the chili from Judy's face.

"At least someone is enjoying that chili" Rick chuckled.

They occupied their time for the next few minutes, joking and laughing at Judy's antics, purposely ignoring the one thing that was boring a hole in all of their hearts. Michonne was going to be given to Negan the next day.

After she had eaten, Judy immediately began to get fussy, bedtime quickly overtaking her. Carl knew his parents wanted to be alone together, and he volunteered to go upstairs and put Judy to bed. He said goodnight, kissing Michonne on the cheek, something that he'd never done before.

"Wake me up in the morning. I'm gonna be there when you leave. I have to be there." Carl said, his eyes shimmering.

"Of course" Michonne replied, squeezing his hand, "goodnight Carl".

Carl carried Judy upstairs, leaving Rick and Michonne sitting at the table together. They sat in silence for a few moments when Rick began to open his mouth to speak.

"Shhh" Michonne said, placing a finger over his open lips. "Please. I don't want to fight, I don't want to argue about this. It's all we've been doing for the last two days. I have to do this. Even if I wanted to back out of it, I can't Rick. Negan makes the decisions now, and he wants me to come. I don't have a choice. Please… please don't argue with me now. Not tonight."

Rick reached up and held the hand that she was pressing over his lips. He kissed the top of it and looked in her eyes. "OK. I won't."

The two of them stood and began to clean up the dishes on the table. They dumped them into the sink and left them there. Neither of them was in the mood to do dishes.

Michonne turned to gaze at Rick, and they shared one of their intense stares.

"When you're there with him, I want you to remember me." He said, moving closer to her. "I want you to remember how much I need you, how much I love you." He whispered, putting one hand on each of her hips. "I want you to know that I'll be thinking of you every second that you're away, and I'll be counting down the minutes until you're back." He said, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her up against his chest. "I want you to remember how I smell, how I taste, how I feel on you." He growled, nibbling at her neck. "How I feel inside of you." He whispered, pressing his hardness up against her.

Michonne let out a moan as Rick licked her earlobe and then began to suck on her neck.

"I could never forget" she whispered back as her hands made their way up to the back of his neck, pushing him closer to her, basking in the warmth of his body up against hers. "I'm yours, remember?" She knew Rick needed to hear it. She knew he had been beaten and broken by Negan, and Negan taking her was another death blow to his confidence, to his self-esteem. She wanted to say it out loud, to make it clear to him that nothing had changed. That she was still with him. She was his.

"And I'm yours" Rick answered, lifting her off the ground. He carried her to her old bedroom as they kissed and caressed each other the whole way. Once inside, he gently placed her on the ground as he turned to close the door.

"What do you need tonight?" he asked, "How can I make you happy?".

Michonne burst into tears with that question. She had never had a man who had asked her what she needed as much as Rick had. A man who put her happiness far above his own. She loved this man so much her heart ached.

"I just need you" Michonne said through her tears. "I want you. Make love to me Rick"

Rick nodded. He'd give her anything she asked for. He reached out and held her face in his hands. He wiped away her tears with each of his thumbs, kissing her cheeks where the tears had been. He then kissed her forehead and her lips, slowly working his way down to her neck. He held her tightly as he kissed along her neck, mumbling 'I love you' after each kiss.

He reached down to the bottom of her shirt and gave her a peck on the lips before slowly lifting the shirt up. As his arms moved upwards they grazed her belly and her breasts causing her to shiver. She held her arms above her head so that he could remove the shirt. His hands slowly traced their way down her sides and around to her back, where he quickly unhooked her bra. He pulled away from her slightly to look in her eyes.

"I love you Michonne. I love you so much." He said, before crashing his lips into hers again. She kissed him more hungrily now, the feeling of his hands on her bare back awakening her desire for him. He pulled back again, lowering her bra straps one by one and kissing her shoulders as he completely pulled her bra off and tossed it to the ground.

He then picked her up and laid her topless body down on the bed, laying next to her. He pressed his head against her bare chest, and for a moment she was confused about what he was doing.

"Rick?" she asked, wondering why he wasn't kissing her. "Shhhh" he said, pressing a finger to her lips in the same way she had to him earlier. "I'm listening" he said, "you asked me to make love to you, and I want to love every part of you. I want to appreciate every part of you. Down to your heartbeat." Michonne smiled and laid still as Rick listened to her heart. She ran her fingers through his curls and enjoyed the feeling of his cheek pressed against her chest.

"Does it sound healthy?" Michonne asked, humoring him. He smiled. "It sounds like a woman in love. It sounds like a woman who knows that the man laying next to her would do anything for her."

"Really?" Michonne joked. "You're absolutely right. You know, you'd make a good doctor."

"Mmmm… I'd be _your_ doctor any day" Rick said, kissing between Michonne's breasts, making her giggle. Rick continued downward until he kissed circles around her navel and then buried his face into her belly causing her to giggle again.

"You sure are taking your sweet time" Michonne joked.

"Oh, 'cuz I know I'll be getting a sweet treat" Rick joked back, kissing her right above where her jeans began. He reached down and unbuttoned her jeans, pulling them down her legs. Michonne sat up to help him and he quickly protested. "No. I want to take care of you tonight. Tonight, it's only about you. Sit back and get comfortable."

She quickly nodded, laying back and allowing Rick to undress her until she was completely naked. She had been naked before him dozens of times now, but every time felt like the first time. Her body hummed with excitement as she watched him watching her. She watched his eyes slowly move up her body, as he stood there fully dressed. "Take your clothes off" she demanded. She wanted to see him naked. She wanted no barriers between them. She wanted him to see her fully and she wanted to see the same.

He nodded and pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it on the ground. As always she was mesmerized by his body. His lean belly and toned arms and chest. He was so fucking sexy and he knew it. He smirked at her as he unbuckled his belt.

"Like what you see?" he teased, noticing she was staring. He did a playful little dance as if he were a stripper, flexing his muscles and thrusting his hips. He ran his hands down his own body and then smacked his behind with a laugh. Michonne thought he was adorable. "Obviously" she replied, running her hands slowly down her body and stopping right at the spot between her legs. Her movements caused him to freeze for a second as he watched her pleasure herself. His mouth dropped open and he watched like he was in a trance. "Like what you see?" she teased him back.

"Oh God Michonne" Rick murmured, and he quickly kicked off his pants and underwear, wanting nothing more than to be touching her. He climbed back onto the bed and positioned himself on top of her.

Starting at her forehead, he began raining kisses down her body. After every kiss he would say a word.

"All. I. Want. Tonight. Is. To. Make. You. Happy." When he got to the last word his head was positioned between her legs. He pressed his tongue up against her opening, causing her to jump in shock as he pushed his tongue inside and began to kiss her lips slowly.

Michonne let out a low moan as Rick slowly began tongue kissing her lower lips. He flicked his tongue back and forth against her clit and then returned to kissing her again. She still couldn't believe how skilled this man was with his tongue. The things he did to her, no man had ever done before. Before they were together she had imagined what sex with him would be like, but she had no idea how much better it would be in real life than it was in her fantasies.

"Mmmmm" she moaned as he gripped her hips and buried his face even further into her. He was hitting the right spot every time his tongue touched her clit, and her whole body jerked in response. "Oh Rick" she panted as her back arched off the bed. She looked down and saw him staring back up at her as the rhythm of his tongue continued. "Oh… oh… ahhh…." She moaned, closing her eyes.

He reached up and grabbed both of her breasts, massaging both nipples as he continued. Michonne's eyes were involuntarily squeezed shut now. She could feel Rick's hands on her breasts and his tongue on her clit, and his warm breath on her belly. She began to shake. "Rick… please…" she huffed, forcing her eyes open. He looked up at her but didn't stop his work. "I want you inside".

"This is your night" he said "This isn't about me".

"This isn't about you. _I_ need you. Please."

Without another word, Rick crawled up her body and stared in her eyes. Without taking his eyes off of hers, he positioned his hips with hers and entered her. The sensation of him filling her made her gasp and close her eyes again.

"How do you want it?" he asked her. "Fast or slow?".

"Slow" she moaned, "I just want to feel you."

Rick pressed his cheek against hers as he grinded his body against hers. She wrapped one arm around his back and placed the other on his butt as he slowly pushed himself in and out of her. She brought her legs up higher, letting him get a better angle, and he gasped as her walls gripped him. As he pumped into her he alternated between kissing her and whispering in her ear.

 _I love you Michonne. You're so beautiful. You feel so good baby. I'm yours, all yours. You're mine._

His loving words brought her closer and closer to release and she whispered back to him as well.

 _I'm all yours Rick. I love you. Oh God. Yes Rick. You're mine. You're all mine._

As Rick's excitement increased, he picked up the pace, causing Michonne's moans to get louder and louder. He was glad they didn't go upstairs to their bedroom because they certainly would've woken up Carl and Judith. He watched her as she squirmed underneath him, her hips matching his thrusts. She reached up and pulled him downwards so he was laying directly on top of her, their moist skin sticking together.

"Hold me Rick" she moaned "Please, don't let go".

He buried his arms underneath her back, pushing himself into her. If this was what she needed he would give it to her. He picked up the pace even more and he could feel her open mouth pressed against his shoulder. She began giving him little love bites on his shoulder and then suddenly she let out a high pitched moan. He could feel her walls clenching and fluttering as she came hard, her whole body going rigid. He continued pumping into her and soon he came next, his body writhing on top of her as she lay still, totally spent from their session of lovemaking.

He moved to roll off of her but she whispered "No. Stay. I like this."

He nodded, and buried his face into her shoulder. They lay entwined in every way possible, as he was still inside of her.

"Rick. I'm scared." Michonne admitted. She didn't know where the words came from, she hadn't even admitted that to herself. It just kind of came out before she had time to think.

"Then don't do it Michonne. Please." He begged her.

"Rick, he'll kill Carl, or at least maim him. If I agreed to go and don't show up, he might kill me, just to get at you. I don't have a choice."

Rick nodded. He knew that this conversation was going nowhere, and Michonne was right. She couldn't back out now so there was no point in discussing it anymore.

"I am so sorry that he's making you go there to get back at me. It's my fault. I shouldn't have been rude to him. I should have just given in to everything he asked for. I know that he's threatening you and Carl to get back at me. I'm so sorry Michonne. I never meant to put you or Carl in danger."

"I know. Just promise me something. When the Saviors are around you won't fight. You won't stare them down. You can't. We will find a way to beat them, but until then you have to play their game."

Rick nodded. "I promise. Now let's get some sleep" he said, both of them curling around each other.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

The next morning Rick and Michonne took a shower together in the downstairs bathroom and then wrapped towels around themselves and dashed upstairs to their own bedroom. Michonne made it into the bedroom, and just as Rick was closing the door behind him, Carl's room door opened.

"Dad!" Carl called.

Rick, naked under his towel and still dripping from his shower froze as if he'd been caught red handed.

"I woke up early and no one was in your room. I thought you'd left without me." Carl looked Rick up and down, realizing where he and Michonne were last night. "Oh... I guess you were downstairs" Carl said.

"Uh, yea" Rick replied turning red. "We're getting dressed. They should be here soon to pick up Michonne."

Carl nodded and disappeared back into his room.

Twenty minutes later, the family was dressed and ready to go. Michonne had decided to say her goodbye to Judith in their own house, as they didn't want her to be anywhere near the Saviors when they arrived. She wanted to say goodbye to Carl privately as well, as Negan still didn't know how close the two of them were and she didn't want to give him any additional ammunition to use against the family.

Michonne held Judith close to her, hugging her. Judith squealed and grabbed a handful of Michonne's hair. "I love you" Michonne said to her, breathing in the baby's scent. "I'll be back soon."

Judy turned and pressed her mouth against Michonne's cheek, leaving a circle of spit.

"Thanks Judy" Michonne said with a laugh, as she gave the little girl a kiss on her forehead and handed her to Rick. She then embraced Carl, holding him tightly against her. She could feel Carl's rapid heartbeat and breathing and could tell he was either pissed off or about to cry.

"He won't hurt me" Michonne whispered in his ear, even though they both knew she couldn't guarantee that. "I'm coming back and I'm bringing Daryl home. I love you Carl."

Carl nodded and she pulled him back so she could look at him. His face was red with unshed tears, but his eyes were hard. "You're coming back" he repeated. "Love you too".

Michonne nodded, patting him on the back.

Carl took Judy from Rick and left to take her to her babysitter before he met up again with his parents at Alexandria's gates.

As soon as Carl was gone, Rick leaned in and kissed Michonne passionately, and then rested his forehead against hers. "You're coming back" he repeated, saying it as if he needed to believe it himself.

He then grabbed her hand and the two of them walked over to the gates. A few minutes later Carl joined them minus Judy, and the trio waited for the men who would come to take Michonne away.

A half hour later four trucks pulled up to Alexandria's gates. Only the people in the first truck got out of their vehicles. Rick walked over to the gate and opened it for the men.

Five of Negan's men, some who Rick recognized from the night Glenn and Abraham were killed, walked into Alexandria. "We're here for the woman with the dreads" the man said, stating the obvious.

Michonne, who was still holding Rick's hand could feel him tense up, but she discreetly rubbed his fingers with her thumb. She quickly pecked Rick on the cheek and then let go of him, stepping forward.

"Turn around" the man ordered in a nonchalant voice, as if this was just another day of kidnapping people from their homes and presenting them to Negan. Michonne turned her back to the man and was now facing Carl who was a few feet back. She could see the hatred emanating from him as he stared at the men who were taking her away. Michonne stared at him so he would focus on her and she gave him a nod and a wink. She couldn't see his reaction, because as soon as she winked a blindfold was put over her eyes and tied around her head. Two strong hands then wrapped around her arms, and she was lead away.

She could tell she was being led out of the gates to one of the waiting cars. The men weren't rough with her, but they were definitely holding her firmly in case she decided to try to get away. She could hear a car door open and someone ordered her to get in. They pushed her head downwards so she wouldn't hit it as she made her way into the car. She felt the door close next to her, and she could tell someone was sitting next to her, and there were two more people in the driver and front passenger side of the car. Within seconds the car had started and was moving. Moving her away from her home. Moving her away from the people she loved. Moving her closer to Negan.


	5. Chapter 5

Michonne felt the blindfold being loosened from her head. As it fell away, she squinted at the brightly lit room. It was the first time she was able to see in a couple of hours, and she wasn't sure if she'd like what she'd see when her vision cleared.

She had just arrived at Negan's home and had been taken through a series of doors and hallways, and what sounded like an elevator, to wherever this brightly lit room was. She thought it was smart that they had kept her blindfolded this long. She really had no idea where she was or how she'd gotten there. As her vision cleared she realized she was in some kind of sun room or green house, full of plants. Three of the room's four walls was encased in glass, letting sunlight into the large room. One of the glassed walls had a door that led to an outside garden, and judging from the view of the tops of buildings, she was in a rooftop garden.

After her blindfold had been removed, she was left alone with no instructions, so she took the opportunity to peek out the windows, looking for any landmarks she could use to identify her location. The building she was in seemed to be a complex, with smaller building surrounding it. In the distance she could see office buildings and brick factories, so she assumed the area she was being held in used to be more urban than the suburbs of Alexandria. She figured this building was approximately 7 or 8 stories high. She turned to study the room she was in in more detail. There were long rows of edible plants growing indoors. She could see peppermint, thyme, basil and peppers. She made her way to the glass door and could see larger edible plants like corn, squash, and tomatoes growing in the outside garden. She hated to admit it, but it was beautiful up here.

She knew there was a reason why they took her to this room. Negan probably wanted to show her the best of his home and make a good impression. She wasn't sure why Negan was so drawn to her, and why he even cared what she thought of him, but she would use that to the best of her ability, and for the protection of her family.

She was left alone for what she guessed was about ten minutes. Soon she heard a door open behind her. She spun around and found herself face to face with Negan. She could see his guards close the door behind him, but they didn't enter the room. They were alone.

Her heart was racing but she didn't say a word as he approached. "Hi Michonne" he said with his southern accent, which sounded oddly similar to Rick's. Not wanting to piss him off, Michonne nodded curtly. He smiled and his eyes ran from her feet, up her body, and to her face, making her uncomfortable. She kept her composure though, and stared straight into his eyes. "You look absolutely fucking beautiful" he added. When she didn't respond, he continued.

"Welcome to the Sanctuary" he said, spreading his arms out in a wide gesture. "I know you'll enjoy your stay here. I trust my men behaved themselves on the way over here?" he asked. Michonne nodded again. "Good. I wanted to take you on a private tour, personally. Follow me." He said, as he led the way towards the door leading to the outside garden. Michonne reluctantly followed behind him, and he opened the door for her as she walked outside.

The outside garden was beautiful, and had she'd been with anyone else she would have complemented them on the effort put into keeping it well manicured, but she kept silent as they walked through it. "This garden isn't for everyone. These are my personal plants. This whole rooftop is mine. My sanctuary within the Sanctuary. Very few people who live here have actually seen this area. Only people I trust, or who are special to me."

Michonne glanced up from staring at a corn stalk and glared at him. Her mind was racing. _What the fuck does that mean?_

Negan seemed a little surprised that he said that himself. He turned his back to her and called over his shoulder. "Let's go, let me show you the dining hall".

Negan spent the next half hour escorting Michonne around the place he called the Sanctuary. Michonne was surprised by the sheer number of people who seemed to fill every room. Michonne noticed that there seemed to be a class system. Some of the workers seemed sickly and thin, with holes and dirt on their clothing, while others were better dressed with clean clothes. The men with weapons seemed to be doing the best, as all of them seemed healthy and well kept. Regardless of class though, whenever Negan passed anyone they dropped to one knee and bowed as if he were a king. She noticed the people also shot her curious looks as she walked behind him.

Michonne was still trying to figure out why she was here and what Negan expected of her. After he finished showing her a factory room where women were washing clothing, Michonne decided to get to the point.

"Why did you ask me to come here?" she asked softly.

Negan ignored her and continued down the hallway.

"Why am I here?" she asked a little louder, and the other people in the hallway quickly scurried out of the way as Negan stopped and turned around.

"I told you, I asked you to come because I wanted to get to know you better, without that boyfriend of yours around."

"Why do you want to know me better?" she asked.

Negan took a few steps closer. "To be honest, I'm fucking fascinated by you. I can tell you can fucking take care of yourself, yet you choose to hang around that loser and the rest of that group of pussies. I wanna know what makes Rick so fucking special. How the hell did _he_ wind up with a woman like you?"

Michonne stared into Negan's eyes. She could tell he was serious. He really wanted to know more about her.

"What does Rick have that I don't?" Negan asked.

"You want to know why I'm with Rick? Rick is a good man. He's kind, he's caring, and he will do what he needs to do to keep his people safe."

Negan rubbed his beard and then looked up at the wall behind her as if he were remembering something. "Yea, I used to be like that too until I realized the good guy always comes in last..."

Michonne was surprised by the emotion she heard in Negan's voice, and she swore she saw the briefest of shimmer of tears in his eyes, but as soon as she noticed it, it was gone, replaced by his maniacal grin.

"or dead, like the two of your friends who's heads I bashed in."

Michonne didn't change her facial expression, but rage began to build up inside of her again.

"When can I see Daryl?" she asked.

"I'll let you see the little bitch, but after."

"After what?" Michonne asked, confused.

"After you join me for dinner."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Negan took Michonne to a hallway that reminded her of a hotel. The floor was carpeted and there were mirrors on the walls. This part of the Sanctuary was much nicer than any other place he'd shown her yet. He looked back and noticed her eyeing the paintings and décor.

"These are my private quarters" Negan said. "You'll be staying here. My wives will help you get dressed for dinner."

"What?" Michonne asked. "I don't need help getting dressed. I am dressed."

"They're gonna get you some new clothes and make sure you're presentable. Not that you're not beautiful right now, but I don't have guests too often, and when I do, I make sure they're taken care of."

"No thank you" Michonne said. "I'm really fine…"

"You're doing it." Negan said, his eyes hardening. "Don't make me say it again."

Michonne was raging on the inside, but she knew to pick her battles, and this was one that wasn't worth arguing about. She said nothing as Negan unlocked one of the doors and entered, holding it open so she'd follow him inside. She was shocked by the large size of the room they walked into. It was lushly furnished with couches and chairs, and a chandelier hung from the ceiling.

"Ladies!" Negan yelled.

Suddenly, women shuffled into the previously empty living room and Michonne immediately took in their half naked appearances. They wore lingerie of various lengths and looked like women out of a Victoria's secret catalogue. They all were beautiful, clean, and looked fairly healthy, unlike some of the people Michonne spotted in the hallways around the Sanctuary.

As each of them entered the room, they greeted Negan with a kiss, and then sat on one of the sofas or chairs in the living room. There were six in all.

"Michonne, these are my wives. Wives, this is Michonne. Michonne is my guest and I want you to dress her up for dinner tonight. Make her look pretty, you know what I like."

The women plastered smiles on their faces and nodded complacently.

"I got shit to do" Negan said, turning his back. "I'll see you later". And with that he left Michonne with the six women.

As soon as Negan left the smiles disappeared from the women's faces.

"Who the fuck are you?" one of the women asked.

Michonne stared the woman down. She really didn't appreciate the woman's tone, but she had a feeling making nice with Negan's wives could have benefits in terms of learning information.

"Michonne" Michonne said.

"Why are you here?" another one asked.

"Maybe you should ask your husband" Michonne replied.

"What group are you with?" The first one asked again.

"Alexandria" Michonne said, and the women all froze.

"Ain't that the group that murdered a shitload of our men?" a new one asked.

Michonne sighed. This wasn't going well.

"Negan made me come here. Believe me, I'd rather be somewhere else."

"Let me get this straight. Your fucking people attacked us unprovoked, Negan brought you here, and he wants us to get you dressed for dinner? Fuck that." One of the wives said before she turned and walked off.

"Your people killed my cousin!" one of the women yelled, advancing on Michonne. Michonne took a step back.

"I don't want to fight, but I will if you try something." She said, trying to talk the woman down.

"You don't want to fight? Your people are fucking murderers and so are you."

The woman swung at Michonne and Michonne caught her fist, wrapping the woman's arm around so that it was pinned behind her back. "Stop it!" Michonne warned, letting the woman go and pushing her away.

"You bitch!" The woman screamed, turning around and attacking Michonne again. She grabbed Michonne by the hair and tried to yank her to the ground. Michonne grabbed the woman's arms and swept her legs out from underneath her causing her to crash to the ground.

"Stop attacking me!" Michonne yelled, pointing a finger in her face. "I'm not here to fight you. I don't want to hurt you but if you attack me again I will knock you out!"

The woman on the ground glared up at Michonne but didn't try to get up as Michonne backed away. The other women stared.

"You can dress your own fucking self. The clothes are in the closet over there." Another wife said as she helped up the one on the floor.

Michonne stood there in silence as the women all left the room. When she was alone she let out a breath. _So much for finding out information from the wives._

She reluctantly strolled over to the closet with the clothes and opened it. As she thumbed through her choices, she was disappointed by the skimpiness of every article of clothing. She pulled out an orange thigh length sweater dress which was the most modest outfit she could find. _This better be good enough_ she thought, as she took it off a hangar. She fully planned on wearing the sweater dress and her boots.

Suddenly someone came up behind her, startling her.

"You'd better pick some heels too. Those gold ones right there go with it, and I have some gold jewelry to match that you can borrow."

Michonne spun around to see a woman standing behind her. She was tiny, up to Michonne's shoulder, with curly natural hair like Sasha's, and a caramel skin complexion. "I'm just gonna wear my boots." Michonne explained.

"No. You're not. Negan won't allow that. He asked us to dress you and if you're not dressed the way he likes we'll be punished. You're wearing heels."

Michonne looked into the woman's eyes and could see she was determined. Michonne reluctantly nodded and grabbed the gold heels the woman pointed to. "I'll do your hair too" the woman volunteered. "I did hair and makeup before, I do a good job. Go take a shower."

Michonne looked the woman up and down but decided to do as she said. She needed an ally here.

"My name is Michonne" she said.

"I heard you the first time you said it" the woman replied.

"What's yours?"

"Tynesha. Go take a shower."

Michonne nodded and headed off in the direction that Tynesha pointed.

Twenty minutes later Michonne was clean and dressed in the orange dress. She sat on the living room floor as Tynesha styled her locs. She worked in silence making some kind of high ponytail.

"Why are you helping me?" Michonne asked.

Tynesha rolled her eyes. "I'm not helping you, I'm helping myself. You going out there looking a mess makes us all look bad. The other girls may not care, but I'm not getting punished because some murderous bitch decided to wear boots."

Michonne held back a smirk, already liking this woman.

"I don't know why you're here and I don't give a fuck, but if you mess up what I've got going for me, I will fuck you up." Tynesha warned.

"Thank you. For doing my hair." Michonne said.

"Don't thank me yet murderous bitch, I'm not done"

Michonne couldn't hold back the chuckle that escaped her mouth, and she heard Tynesha laugh as well.

"Does Negan make you dress up every time you eat dinner?" Michonne asked.

"Hell yea, that's what we're here for. We're his eye candy. He parades us around to show the other men what they're missing and what they can't have. It's supposed to be an honor to be his wife, and it sure as hell beats working for points."

"So you're happy here?" Michonne asked.

Tynesha leaned over to look Michonne in the eye. "What are you, a reporter? Why the fuck do you care? You plan on becoming a wife? 'Cuz if you are I'll cut you right now. We don't need any more competition over here."

Michonne outright laughed now. "No, I'm good. Believe me. I've just never met a man with six wives before."

"If he wanted he could have way more. He could have anything he wanted. Everything and anything in here, living or dead is his. Even you, bitch." Tynesha said, resuming her work on Michonne's head.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A few hours later, all the wives and Michonne were dressed, and Tynesha had even done Michonne's makeup. They were all sitting in the living room when Negan arrived and was greeted by a kiss from all his wives. Negan looked at Michonne who was still sitting on the couch in her sweater dress with her legs crossed. His eyes widened at the sight of her. He passed all his wives and approached her, reaching out his hand to pull her up from her seat. He held out his elbow to signal that she wrap her arm around his.

She hesitated, but once again decided that this wasn't large enough an issue to fight him over. Michonne noticed the eye rolls and sighs from the wives as Negan walked through the hallways with her on his arm.

"You look even more fucking beautiful" he said. "Who did your hair?"

"Tynesha" Michonne grumbled.

Negan nodded in satisfaction. He led her and his wives into the dining hall and they all sat at a long table that was placed with the best possible view of the cafeteria. As Negan and his wives entered, everyone else stopped eating and took a knee. Negan led Michonne to the chair directly next to his and pushed in her chair allowing her to sit first. There was an audible intake of breath from some of the wives who were watching the whole exchange. Negan then sat, and Michonne assumed that was the cue for everyone else to sit because those who had taken a knee then rose and returned to their meals.

"See that?" Negan said, grinning. "That's some fucking respect. I'll bet you a pretty penny Rick's people don't do that for him, do they?"

"That's not respect, that's fear" Michonne said.

"Same difference. They do what I want. That's the point right?" Negan said, picking up a bottle of beer that was waiting for him at his assigned spot.

"It's not the same thing" Michonne said, quietly observing the people who sat around them. The class system wasn't more clear than it was in the dining hall. Those members of the lower class sat in tables in the corners, some of them crouching on the floor without a chair. Those in the middle class sat at the tables in the middle, and had more food on their plates. Negan's trusted men sat closest to his table with him and his wives, and they were armed.

A group of people brought Negan and his wives, and Michonne, plates heaping with food. It was the best looking meal she'd seen since the apocalypse began. Negan watched as Michonne studied the plate. "Pretty damn good huh? Bet you ain't eat anything like this in years." Michonne honestly could say she hadn't. There were two ribs smothered with barbeque sauce, spinach, rice, and some macaroni and cheese. It looked like the boxed macaroni and cheese, but it still looked appetizing. Michonne's stomach grumbled loudly.

"Go ahead, eat. You ain't gonna get anything like that in your little town" Negan said, watching her as he took a bite of his ribs.

Michonne was tempted to eat until she realized that all of this food was extorted from other communities. She knew the ribs and spinach had to have come from Hilltop, and who knows who gave them the rice and macaroni and cheese. Everything eaten here was a result of Negan's domination of other people.

Michonne suddenly lost her appetite as she thought of Glenn and Abraham's bashed in heads. They were killed to make her people, make the love of her life bow to Negan's will. She couldn't eat food that was the result of that.

"Eat" Negan said more firmly.

"No. I'm not hungry." Michonne said, placing her fork down.

"I said eat. That wasn't a question."

"And I said no." Michonne replied, looking Negan in the eye.

"Fine. Fucking starve." Negan said, snatching the ribs off of Michonne's plate. "C'mere Tynesha" Negan called down the table. Tynesha who was wearing a short black strapless dress and matching black heels quickly jumped up from her seat further down the table and scurried over to Negan. "Yes baby?" she asked, with a fake happy voice.

"Here you go sweet cheeks, this is for doing Michonne's hair nicely. And meet me in my room tonight." He said, dropping Michonne's ribs into a plate and passing it to her.

"Thank you baby" Tynesha said, leaning in and kissing Negan on the lips, making Michonne nauseous. Negan then slapped her behind and Tynesha quickly scurried back to her seat, receiving jealous looks from the other wives.

 _This is how things run here?_ Michonne thought in disgust, _being this man's plaything is a better option than being one of the people eating their food down there?_

Michonne felt nothing but pity for these women. Negan ate in silence after Michonne had rejected his food, and Michonne was absolutely fine with it. But soon, she heard music coming from and old fashioned boom box that ran on batteries. Negan had just finished his food and he burped loudly.

"Dance with me" he commanded Michonne. He noticed the look of defiance on her face and added "This is also not a question, if you wanna see the redneck you'll do it."

Michonne slowly pushed her chair back and stood. Negan grabbed her hand and pulled her out to a cleared area between the dinner tables that was designated for dancing. He put both hands on her waist and she had to resist the urge to punch him. She didn't put her arms around his neck and she kept as much distance between them as she could and still be considered dancing. Negan pulled her closer to him, but didn't force her to put her hands on his shoulder. She stared behind his head, looking at anything but him.

"You really hate me don't you?" he asked.

She didn't answer, continuing to study the wall behind him.

"You think your Rick is so much better than me? He does the same exact things I do. Killing out of necessity, taking from others so he can live? Hell, everyone who's fucking alive right now has done that. You keep thinking your precious Rick is a saint. One day you'll realize he's just like me. I was him once, in the beginning. I was the so called 'good guy'." Negan's eyes left Michonne's face and fastened to a point beyond her head as if he were remembering. Michonne glanced at him in her peripheral vision.

"In the beginning, when this shit all happened. I was surviving with my wife. My real wife, Lucille. Lucille man, she was bad ass. She was an Olympic level archer, she had the bows at home and everything, so when this happened we were set. She had her bow, and I had my baseball bat she'd given me for my birthday. I was in a league, so it was my most prized possession. I took that bat everywhere. Still do. Anyway, she really was the one protecting _me_ , and she took no shit from anyone. Hell, _I_ was scared of her. It was just us and our car for two months. Driving from place to place, trying to survive. One day we were driving and we saw these men in a field, surrounded by the dead." Negan paused for a moment and Michonne turned her head slightly to get a better look at his face. She could see his eyes were glistening over with tears.

"Lucille insisted we stop and help the men. She said she wasn't gonna stand by and watch those men get torn apart. So we did. We killed some of the dead, making a path for the men to come towards us, to get away. They ran up to us and stabbed Lucille, right in the chest. They stabbed her so the dead had something to eat so they could run away. They ran right past me, jumped in our car and left." Negan used one of his hands to swipe at his eyes.

Michonne was now looking at Negan fully. She could tell he wasn't faking this, and she was unnerved by how much emotion he was showing.

"She was still alive, but the dead were coming, and she wasn't gonna make it. I left her right there, and I climbed a tree to get out the way. I watched as they ate her alive. I hid like a fucking pussy. They kept eating her until she turned. I watched her turn."

Negan stopped attempting to dance, but still held Michonne's waist with one hand as he wiped away a tear with another.

"I stayed up in that fucking tree for hours, just watching her. Watching her wander around, growl, and stumble. You know why I stayed up there so long?" Negan asked, but Michonne could tell he wasn't expecting her to answer.

"I was trying to work up the courage to do it. To put her down. And finally, I climbed down from the tree, took the bat she gave me, and bashed her head in. And on that day, I became the Negan you know now."

Michonne just stared at him in silence. For the first time she felt pity for him, for what he'd gone through.

"I'm sorry" she said sincerely.

He shrugged his shoulders and she could tell he was trying to regain his composure. "I haven't told anybody that story. Not a fucking one. But you remind me of her, my Lucille. Look, I know you don't like the way things are run here. You don't like what I do to keep my people in check, I get it. But I think _you_ could help me run things better. You can help me to be better. Whatever it is you like about Rick, I can do that, I can be that. But I want you by my side."

Michonne was shocked by Negan's words. He was inviting her to stay here and help him rule? Has he lost his mind? Michonne took a step back, out of range of Negan's arms.

"Let me make this clear to you. I'm _not_ staying here. I'm going home tomorrow like we agreed, with Daryl. You are not Rick. You will never be Rick. And I am not Lucille. I'm sorry you lost her, but you're not going to find her in me. _Ever_."

Negan stared at Michonne for a few seconds and she could feel ice in her stomach. She wasn't sure how far Negan's favoritism towards her would go, and she certainly just caused a blow to his self-esteem. She wondered if she'd gone too far.

Negan sucked his teeth as he stared at her. Even though her heart was racing, she kept his gaze.

"Come. You wanted to see the little redneck bitch, let's go." Negan said coldly, turning his back on her as he began walking.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Michonne followed Negan down a few flights of stairs to what seemed to be the basement of the building. Armed guards were posted at the end of every hallway, and Michonne figured this must be where they kept prisoners. Negan unlocked a door and turned the lights on in a small room. At first, Michonne didn't know what she was looking at.

She noticed a dog cage for large breed dogs in a corner of the room, and the body of a man, naked from the waist up, inside the cage. She couldn't tell if it was a walker or a person, until she recognized the tattoo and scars on his back.

"Daryl?" Michonne yelled in horror. She rushed to the cage and kneeled down in front of it. Daryl had his back to her and she didn't see him move a muscle. As Michonne moved closer, she caught a glimpse of one of his hands and noticed two fingers had been removed. He had red blotches and cuts all over his body from multiple beatings in various stages of healing.

"Daryl?" Michonne called again, terrified that he wasn't answering.

She turned to Negan. "Open the cage! Please?" she begged.

"No. You said you wanted to see him and now you've seen him. He can leave with you tomorrow. He's staying in there until then."

"Please!" Michonne begged again, tears coming to her eyes. "He may not survive until tomorrow. I need to make sure he's ok. I have to."

Negan stared Michonne down, and then looked over at Daryl. He took the key and unlocked the cage. Daryl didn't flinch as the door was swung open, and Michonne crawled inside to check on him. As she moved to the other side of him so she could see his face, she gasped. Both of his eyes were swollen almost completely shut. His gunshot wound hadn't been treated at all and was obviously infected. The cuts and bruises on his body also hadn't been treated and looked red, swollen, and painful.

"Daryl!" Michonne cried, cradling his head in her lap. She leaned down and held his shoulders, rubbing his arms, trying to get any kind of reaction from him. "Daryl wake up" Michonne begged.

Daryl began to stir, his swollen eyes twitching. He began twitching his arms as well.

"No" he moaned softly, moving his head from side to side. "No! No! let go of me, let go!" his screams got louder as he woke up more fully.

"Daryl its ok, it's me. It's Michonne." Michonne tried, holding him tighter as he began to struggle against her.

"Let go of me" he said, flailing wildly.

"Daryl it's Michonne. It's me. I won't hurt you Daryl. I've come to take you home." Michonne said, tears streaming down her face as she saw the anguish her friend was in.

"No!" he screamed louder, "You're not real, let go! It's a trick, you're not real".

"No Daryl, I'll never let go of you. You're one of us, I'll never let go." Michonne said, gently stroking his hair. She saw tears coming from his swollen and purple eyes.

"'Chonne?" Daryl asked, seemingly in disbelief that it was really her. "Yea Daryl, I came to get you. To take you home. It's me."

"No! Why are you here? Did they take you? They'll hurt you!" Daryl said, working himself up into a panic. "Don't hurt her. Don't hurt her please!" he said, turning to Negan. "I'll do it. I'll do whatever you want. Let her go home please! Please don't hurt her!"

Michonne broke down into tears as she saw how fearful her friend was. She knew that they had tortured him the entire time he was here, and judging by the bruises, scars, and the fact that he was missing two fingers, they hadn't been successful in breaking him. Not until she'd come.

"Daryl its ok, its ok. They won't hurt me. I'm not a prisoner here. I've come to take you home. I'm taking you home Daryl."

Daryl suddenly began to sob loudly, as if he had been holding in his cries for the past 6 days and finally they could be released. His sobs shook his whole body and his tears soaked the bottom of Michonne's dress as he cried into her lap. Michonne was crying herself as she gently stroked Daryl's hair, trying to soothe him of at least some of the pain he was bearing.

"Everyone at home is waiting for you. We all missed you Daryl. You're gonna go home."

Michonne looked up at Negan who was watching the entire scene as he stood by the open cage door. As she looked in his eyes she saw something that shocked her to her core. He was looking at her as if he respected what she was doing. She even saw him quickly dab the corner of his eye as if he were wiping away a tear. Then, as if a mask were pulled over his face, Negan's demeanor quickly changed.

"Ok, you see he's alive. Get out of the cage now." Negan demanded.

"No" Michonne replied, staring directly into Negan's eyes. "Not unless you let Daryl out too. You're done with him, he's going home tomorrow. I need to take care of his wounds if you won't let a doctor see him."

"Not gonna happen Michonne" Negan said. "Get out of the fucking cage. Now!"

"If you're not letting him out then I'm staying in here with him. I need to treat his wounds. Either move out the way so I can drag him out of here, or lock the door and leave me alone." Michonne said, dismissing Negan completely as she looked over Daryl's six day old gunshot wound.

Negan stood there for a few moments as if shocked about what she'd just said. No woman had ever talked to him like that after he'd become leader of this group. She had made it clear that she wasn't leaving the cage without Daryl, and he didn't doubt her resolve for a second. The way she spoke to him made him want her even more, but he ignored the feelings that were bubbling up inside of him for this fearless yet obviously caring and gentle woman. But once again, he put on the Negan mask that he knew so well.

"Fine!" he spat, slamming the cage door shut and locking it with a dead bolt. He then turned around and slammed the room's door, locking them inside the cage together.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Yea baby, you like that?" Negan growled as he slammed himself into Tynesha.

"Yes Negan, yes baby, I like that" Tynesha whined, bouncing on top of him even faster. Negan groaned as he flipped Tynesha over so he was on top of her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he dug into her harder. After he had left Michonne and Daryl locked in the cage, he was furious. He had stomped back to the dining hall, dragged Tynesha back to his room, and immediately began fucking her.

But no matter what he did to Tynesha, or what she did to him, he couldn't get Michonne off his mind. He couldn't help but imagine what she'd feel like underneath him, how she'd sound in the throes of passion, how his name would sound being moaned from her lips.

Negan grabbed Tynesha's hands and pinned them down to the bed. _What would Michonne feel like if I pinned her down like this? Would she fight? Would she give in? Would she like it?_

Negan tried to shake the image of Michonne writhing underneath him from his mind, but he couldn't. He didn't realize he'd stopped moving until Tynesha called him.

"Negan? Are… are you done?" she asked.

"What?" he muttered, "yea… yea I'm done" he stuttered. He pulled out of Tynesha and rolled over on to his back.

"But Negan, you're still hard… I can finish you off baby" Tynesha offered.

"No! Go away, fuck!" Negan said impatiently.

Tynesha scowled as she scooped up her clothes, wrapped herself in a towel, and let herself out of Negan's room.

Negan put his hand to his head and sighed. He couldn't even fuck his wife in peace with Michonne under his roof. He didn't know why exactly he was so drawn to her. She did remind him of Lucille, the way she didn't take shit from anyone, the way she was so protective of the people around her, the way she put him in his place when she needed to. But there was something else that he couldn't put his finger on. Something that had to do with Rick. It was _why_ she was with him. That fascinated him more than anything. In the beginning, Rick had acted like he was the boss, but Negan had beaten him into submission. Negan had totally humiliated the man, and Michonne was _still_ loyal to Rick. That was something that Negan hadn't had since his marriage to Lucille. He knew these wives of his would dump him in a second if someone bigger and badder came along, but Michonne, Michonne was loyal. She was ride or die. Negan wanted that.

He knew he wasn't getting any sleep at the moment, so he quickly threw his clothes back on and headed to the basement.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"So it's just us tonight huh? Like the old days?" Michonne asked as she tore a strip of fabric off the bottom of her sweater dress and wrapped it around Daryl's gunshot wound. "Remember that time we went on a run and got stuck overnight? We held up in that moldy old garage and we stayed up all night playing pool on that old pool table we found."

"Yea" Daryl muttered, "kicked your ass"

"In your dreams. I remember I beat your ass 15 to 7"

"Nah. I let you win. Chivalry."

"Fuck you Daryl" Michonne said, pulling the bandage a little too tightly and causing him to suck in a breath. She looked at him apologetically.

Daryl was quiet for a moment as she ripped off a piece from the arms of her dress and started wrapping the fabric around his two missing fingers.

"Back then, before you and Rick. Did you ever wonder 'bout you and me?" Daryl asked, staring up at the ceiling. Michonne froze, looking into Daryl's eyes. She then quickly averted them and continued wrapping his hand.

"Honestly? Yea. I did for a while. We were a lot alike back then. We didn't need to talk much, we both liked to be alone, but together. But then, stuff happened, and I fell for Rick."

Daryl continued to look up at the ceiling. "You love him?"

"Yea. I love him." Michonne responded.

Daryl chewed his lip as he became lost in thought.

"What about you and Carol?" Michonne asked.

"Me and her, we're alike… she understands me better than I do. I ain't good with this kinda stuff. I don't know what to say to her."

"You love her?" Michonne asked, still wrapping Daryl's hand.

"Yea" he admitted.

"Then that's all you have to say."

"Ain't gon' get the chance now" Daryl said sadly.

"Daryl we're going home tomorrow. I'm here to take you home. You'll get a chance to tell her."

"Nobody wants me there. I got Glenn killed. It was all my fault. I was so damn stupid. I thought… I don't know what I thought. I don't know what I was doin'…" Daryl said, tears coming to his eyes and his lip trembling. "And Maggie, and the baby… I killed Glenn." Daryl sobbed, tears flowing from his eyes causing him to shake and sob.

Michonne leaned down and cradled his head that was laying in her lap, her locs hanging over his face like a curtain. "Daryl it wasn't your fault. No one blames you at home. It was Negan that killed Glenn. He _chose_ to do it. We all love and miss you. I mean… what you did _was_ a little stupid, but we still love you. I do." Michonne said, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

Negan, who had snuck back down to the basement long enough to hear the ending of their conversation through the closed door, felt something he hadn't felt in a long time. Jealousy. He was jealous of how tender she was with Daryl. He was jealous of how loyal she was to Rick. He was jealous of the bond that she had with her people, a people who didn't work together because of fear of the consequences, but who worked together because they genuinely wanted to. Negan found himself in an inexplicable rage.

He unlocked the door to the room and threw it open, startling Michonne and Daryl. He stomped into the room and fumbled with the lock to the cage.

"Are you letting us out now?" Michonne asked, pushing Daryl's head off her lap and quickly getting to her knees in preparation to fight him if she had to. She could see how agitated Negan was, and although she had no idea why, she would fight him if he tried to hurt Daryl again.

Negan didn't answer, but as soon as he unlocked the cage he reached in and grabbed Michonne by the shoulder, yanking her out of the cage. Daryl tried to grab Michonne's leg but he was too weak to hold on.

"Get off of me!" Michonne screamed, twisting in Negan's grip until he let go.

"Why is it you can be this forgiving to this redneck that got your friend killed, but you can't give me a shot?" Negan yelled.

Michonne felt sick to her stomach. Is that what this whole thing was about? He has a crush on her? He wants to get with her? He wants to take her away from Rick?

"I will never be with you, never! You killed two members of my family. You beat them to death! You tortured one of my closest friends! You think you're like Rick? You're nothing like Rick. You're a sadistic monster! A selfish child. A self-absorbed dick! I could never be with you. You have no compassion. You have no soul." Michonne screamed at Negan.

"Who the fuck are you…" Negan began.

"You!" Michonne screamed, getting in his face. "I'm talking to you! You rule with fear, but fear only lasts for so long. After a while the people who fear you grow to hate you even more. And hate will outlive fear any day. You keep pushing people long enough and eventually they'll fight back, no matter how much fear you put in them. One day all the people you tread on will dance on your grave. You'll have no one. You'll be no one, and then you'll be dead."

Michonne stared Negan down and he stared back. He could tell she had reached the end of her rope. Any fear that was in her eyes before was gone. He thought she looked like a goddess. This is what he needed. A woman who wasn't afraid to put him in his place, who would speak the truth and not give a fuck. He wanted her. He needed her.

Negan leaned in closer to her. He wanted nothing more than to press his lips against hers. Michonne, realizing what Negan was doing, yanked her face backwards and punched him directly in the eye. Her eyes then opened wide in horror when she realized what she'd done.

Negan took a few steps back and held his face in disbelief. Daryl, who was watching the whole scene from inside the cage shook in horror. He remembered what happened the last time he punched Negan.

"I…" Michonne began, but then stopped. She didn't know what to say.

"You fucking punched me" Negan said, not sure if he was angry or impressed. "Shit! That is not ok. Your redneck friend may just lose another finger for that one."

"Look, I shouldn't have hit you" Michonne apologized, quickly trying to save Daryl from punishment, "but I meant everything that I said, and you tried to kiss me against my will." Michonne took a step forward, moving into Negan's personal space. She could see his eyes widen in surprise.

"You want us to work for you and cooperate. If you hurt me, Rick will never cooperate. Rick leads the group, but I lead him, and without me they'll never work for you. They'll fight you until you have to kill us all. _I_ am the key to getting what you want. You need me."


	6. Chapter 6

"You want us to work for you and cooperate. If you hurt me, Rick will never cooperate. Rick leads the group, but I lead him, and without me they'll never work for you. They'll fight you until you have to kill us all. I am the key to getting what you want. You need me." Michonne said, staring into Negan's eyes.

Negan pondered Michonne's words as he stared into her beautiful brown eyes. He could see by the way she interacted with Rick and even Daryl, that the others in her group thought of her as a leader, and they adored her. He could see by Rick's reactions that night in the clearing that she was second in his heart only to his son. And if he was honest with himself, he didn't want to hurt her. He wanted her to choose to stay with him. He wanted her to look at him the way she looked at Rick. But he wouldn't tell her that. Keeping up appearances was important. He didn't want her to know how much of an effect she had on him. If she knew, it would give her the upper hand. She had to know that her actions had consequences.

"Get on your knees" Negan ordered harshly.

Negan was pleased to see fear quickly flicker across Michonne's eyes. She stared defiantly a few seconds longer, rolled her eyes, and slowly got to her knees. Daryl, who was watching the whole scene from the dog cage, gripped the bars in terror as Negan approached Michonne. Michonne kept eye contact as Negan stood before her, reached down, and slowly unbuckled his belt. As much as he wanted her to want him, he also wanted to see fear in her eyes. He slowly pulled the belt through the loops of his jeans as she watched him quietly, her eyes flitting from his face to his belt and back up again.

"Hold out your hands" he commanded.

Michonne squinted her eyes at his command. Her heart was racing but she put her poker face on.

 _He's trying to get a reaction from you. Just breathe._

Michonne held out both hands and Negan noticed they were shaking slightly. He smirked and popped his belt, making a loud sound that startled Michonne and Daryl.

He grabbed both of her wrists roughly and wrapped his belt around them, using the buckle to tighten it and tie her wrists together.

Michonne could hear Daryl breathing rapidly behind her, but everything else was silent.

"You're going back to the wives' quarters" Negan said, leaning into her face, "and you're gonna stay there until I decide what your punishment will be." Negan glanced up at Daryl who was shaking with anger. "And if you don't like that decision, your boy Daryl will get what's coming to you. He still has eight fingers left for now."

Negan pulled upwards on the belt, yanking Michonne up from the floor. He then led her out of the room by the belt as if it were a leash, flicking the lights off on Daryl who was still in the cage, and locking the door behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Michonne had been back at the wives' quarters for three hours now. It had taken some time for her to calm down from the rage she was in about the way Negan had treated her and Daryl. She still had marks on her wrists from where the belt had bit into her flesh. But most of all she feared for Daryl. Even though she was mostly sure Negan wasn't going to kill her, she wasn't so sure about him not harming Daryl, and her main focus was returning Daryl home alive. As she thought about how she could ensure that, she overheard a conversation in the wives' dining area.

"Shit Tynesha! Just... shit! This is bad." Michonne heard one of the wives say.

"I know!" Michonne could hear Tynesha saying, "You think I don't fucking know? Fuck!"

"So what are you gonna do? He's gonna figure it out soon. It's been two months already."

"What the fuck can I do?" Michonne heard Tynesha's voice crack with emotion.

"Look, go to Auntie May. She may know how to get rid of it. She tried with Trina that one time, before she..." the woman went silent.

"Yea. Exactly. Auntie May ain't touching me. Or... this. I'll think of something. I... I can handle it." Tynesha said with a fake confidence that Michonne could relate to.

"I hope so Tynesha. He won't want it. It's better to stop it now, before it grows." The other woman said.

Michonne immediately knew what was going on. Tynesha was pregnant, and Negan was the father. Based on what Negan had told her while she was holding Judith, he wasn't the paternal type.

"Yea" Tynesha muttered, and Michonne could hear one of the women walk away. There was silence in the kitchen for a few minutes, and suddenly Tynesha walked out into the living room where Michonne was.

Tynesha stopped walking when she took in the haggard state of Michonne's dress. The ripped off sleeves and tattered hem line made Michonne look like a beggar.

"What happened to you bitch? You got into another fight?" She asked.

Michonne smirked. "No. I was helping a friend."

"By ruining a perfectly good Gucci dress?" Tynesha asked. "That's a motherfucking tragedy."

"When someone needs your help it doesn't matter what you have on. What's a name brand worth nowadays anyway?" Michonne asked.

"375 dollars bitch, I saw the price tag." Tynesha said, causing Michonne to bust out laughing.

"Who were you helping anyway? What friends do _you_ have here?" Tynesha asked curiously.

"Someone from my group. Negan is holding him here. I came to take him home."

Tynesha sucked her teeth. "If you think you're the one who's taking this friend home, you're sadly mistaken. If Negan _wants_ to let your friend go he will, and if he doesn't he won't. Don't think _you_ have anything to do with it."

Michonne thought about what Tynesha said for a moment. Before she could say anything further, the door to the women's quarters swung open, and Negan walked in. He didn't look like he'd slept at all, although he had changed his shirt. He seemed slightly surprised that Michonne was right in front of him as soon as the door opened, but he quickly hid it and smirked.

"Michonne! Doesn't seem like you slept at all" he said, eyeing her tired face and ripped up clothes.

"Neither did you" she replied.

Negan eyed Tynesha who was standing next to Michonne. "Tynesha, give us a minute" he said, and Tynesha nodded her head and removed herself from the room rather quickly.

"Seems like you're getting along well with my wife" Negan said, plopping down on one of the sofas. Michonne, who was not in the mood for pleasantries with this man who hours ago had threatened one of her best friends, got to the point.

"When are we leaving to go to Alexandria?" she asked. It was the next day, and the sun was already starting to rise.

Negan smirked and shook his finger. "No, no, no. You're forgetting something. You fucking punched me in my face yesterday. You're not gonna just gloss over that. I told you I would consider your punishment and I have. I'd love to make you watch the redneck catch a beating for something you did, but I have something even better. You're gonna stay here another day, and we're gonna make little ol' Rick wonder where the fuck his pussy is. I think that is just perfect. If you're soooo important to Rick, like you told me, well he'll just be flipping the fuck out if he thinks you've gone missing won't he?"

The blood drained from Michonne's face. She knew Rick would lose his mind if she wasn't back when she was supposed to be. It was the perfect punishment for her and for Rick.

"Oh wait, I'm not done" Negan continued. "As punishment for ripping up clothes that belong to my wives, _I'm_ gonna pick out what you're wearing to breakfast today, and you're gonna wear the outfit all day, and wear it home so Rick can get a view too."

Michonne clinched her jaw in a rage. This man was purposely trying to humiliate her, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of reacting. She kept her eyes on his and stared him down. He seemed to be waiting for a response from her, but she didn't offer anything.

"Do you have a problem with that?" he asked, trying to pick a fight. He wanted to see any kind of reaction from her.

"No Negan, I don't have a problem" Michonne said in an even voice, continuing to stare. Her lack of response unnerved him. He cleared his throat and jumped up from his chair, slightly disappointed at her reaction.

"Well then, let's go decide what I'd like to see you in then" he said happily, making his way to the closet. Michonne stood where she was as Negan thumbed through the many skimpy outfits that made up his wives' wardrobe. "Hmm…" he said, pulling out a one-piece dress that was so short it would have barely covered Michonne's bottom. "Y'know, this is so tempting. But I think we can do better than this. I want to find something you wouldn't dare rip pieces off" he said, throwing the dress to the side. He continued to look as Michonne got angrier and angrier, but she was resigned not to react to him as she knew that was what he wanted.

He stopped rummaging through the closet again and said, "Here! I've found it. Fucking perfect!". He held up a laced bra and thong set that was damn near see-through, and a matching sheer robe that went over it.

Michonne could feel her stomach drop in disgust. She hated this man. She hated everything that he was, everything that he stood for. She had felt some pity for him before, but that was gone.

 _I hate you. I will kill you. I will destroy everything you are_ she thought in her head. But she was careful not to let it show in her face. Negan walked to her and put the outfit in her hand.

"I'll be back in a little while to pick up you and my wives for breakfast. You'll be wearing this." He said, staring into her eyes, hoping that she'd give him something, some response. He wanted to see hatred, anger, fear, embarrassment… something, but she only stared at him evenly until he gave her a smile, turned around, and left.

As soon as the door closed she slammed the outfit onto one of the couches and kicked it. She wasn't one for throwing tantrums, but she was so frustrated she couldn't help it. If Negan's goal was to humiliate her, she wouldn't let him. If he wanted her to be shy and embarrassed about walking around in lingerie, she would fuck up his mind. She would be the baddest bitch in lingerie he had ever seen, and she would make him suffer.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Negan left the women's quarters somewhat unsatisfied. He was sure that Michonne would complain after he told her that she was staying at the Sanctuary for another day. He was sure she'd be angry when he picked out the skimpiest outfit he could find for her to wear to breakfast. But he got practically nothing from her and it drove him crazy. He felt like a child begging for attention and receiving the cold shoulder. He was frustrated and slightly fascinated that he couldn't figure this woman out.

He hadn't slept all night. After he dragged Michonne back to the wives' quarters he went up to his garden to take a walk and clear his head. He sat in a lounge chair and tried to come up with ways to punish this brown eyed beauty. Cutting off another one of the redneck's fingers was high on his list, but that had been done already, and really, all it would do would make Michonne hate him more which wasn't really what he wanted. Beating her was another possibility, but he knew he'd never get Rick's cooperation that way, and he wasn't into physically harming women. Emotionally harming them on the other hand, now that wasn't out of the question. He tried to think of what he could do to Michonne emotionally that would have a huge effect on her, and the idea of keeping her another day and forcing her to wear something skimpy came to his head. He thought it was genius, and was actually proud of himself, until he saw her reaction.

Negan was confused about what he really wanted from Michonne. He had never felt this way about a woman before. He wanted her to respect him, love him even, but he also wanted her to fear him. He didn't know how to get both so he danced the line between pining for her affections and forcing her into submission. He was frustrated to a level that he'd never been before and he didn't know what to do about it.

 _That damn woman. How dare she be so fucking gorgeous. How dare she be Rick's! I've got six fucking wives and all I want is her. All I need is her. Shit, I think I'm in fucking love!_

Negan's revelation scared him to his core. Love wasn't something he ever wanted to feel again after Lucille. And the love that he felt for Michonne was different from what he had with Lucille. He was infatuated with Michonne. He couldn't get her out of his head, and it made him simultaneously want her and hate her.

Negan wandered around the factory for a while, thinking about Michonne and ignoring the people who would bow as he went by. When he got hungry enough he turned around and headed to the wives' quarters to gather up Michonne and his wives.

When he opened the door, all of his wives were waiting for him in the living room, but when he spotted Michonne sitting in a chair in the corner of the room his mouth dropped open.

She stared straight ahead and had her legs crossed as she sat. She wore black Louboutin stilettos that matched her black lace thong and panties set, and the black sheer robe that went with it. Her body was pure perfection, and her skin shone in the light. Negan admired her beautifully long toned legs and her toned arms. Her hair and makeup was done as well and he didn't even try to hide the erection that was becoming prominent in his pants.

"God motherfucking damn!" Negan exclaimed, strolling over to Michonne who stared at him with a blank expression on her face. "You're fucking gorgeous!" he gushed, reaching out his hands to help her up from her chair, (partially so he could see more of her body). Michonne got up from the chair on her own, ignoring Negan's hand. As she stood Negan sucked in another breath as he got a full view of her backside. "Shit!" Negan said again, ignoring his wives who were giving him and Michonne dirty looks.

Michonne continued to stare straight ahead, not acknowledging him at all, as his eyes wandered up and down her body. She stood there silently until he finally looked up at her face again.

"Let's go… um… eat… eat…" Negan stuttered, losing his train of thought.

"breakfast?" one of his wives offered.

"Yea… let's go do that" Negan said, never taking his eyes off Michonne. He held out his arm to her for her to take, and she promptly turned, ignoring him, and headed for the door with her head held high.

He stared at her ass which was on display since she was wearing a lace thong, and he lost his train of thought again until one of his wives who saw what Michonne had done said "I'll take your arm Negan". Negan didn't even hear her as he jogged to catch up to Michonne who was walking down the hall without him.

"You look…" Negan started, but Michonne cut him off. "Don't fucking _try_ to touch me ever again" Michonne growled. "I'm doing what you forced me to do, I will cooperate so that I get home, but if you touch any part of my body I swear I will kill you and deal with the consequences later."

Negan just walked next to Michonne quietly. He didn't know what to say. They walked in silence until they got to the cafeteria. As Negan walked in, everyone stopped eating and bowed, but as the people on the ground caught sight of Michonne, eyes popped open and mouths dropped. Male and female Saviors were staring, and Michonne kept her head high as she strutted towards her table like a model on the catwalk. As she reached the chair that she had sat in during dinner the night before, Negan pulled it out for her and allowed her to sit first. Everyone in the cafeteria noticed and stared, and as soon as Negan was seated they all rose from the floor and began to talk about this mysterious woman in lingerie that Negan was treating with more respect than his wives.

Just like during dinner, a group of people came with plates to serve Negan and his wives. Breakfast consisted of oatmeal, eggs, and bacon. Just like during dinner, Michonne refused to eat.

"If you don't eat something you'll get sick" Negan warned. Michonne continued ignoring him as she looked at the other people gathered in the cafeteria, who were also staring at her.

"Will you let Daryl out of that cage?" she asked.

Negan bit into a piece of bacon. "He's where he belongs."

"He did the same thing I did, yet he's in a cage, and I'm sitting next to you at breakfast" Michonne said, staring straight ahead.

"Well I'd much rather see _you_ in a thong than him" Negan joked, shoving a fork full of eggs into his mouth. Michonne quietly continued to look straight ahead. "He assaulted some of my guards, that's why he lost two fingers. He's dangerous and he's staying there until I send him back to your town."

"Can I bring him my food?" Michonne asked, still looking straight ahead.

Negan looked over at her in surprise and was once again taken away by the beautiful sight she was. The sheer robe that covered the lingerie she had on was slightly open, revealing the tops of her breasts, and the robe only came down to her upper thighs, so practically her entire legs were on display. He looked away quickly before he lost his train of thought again. "Why do you care so much about him? You have a thing for him too?" Negan asked.

Michonne rolled her eyes and ignored Negan's question. "Can I bring food to him or not?" she snapped.

"I'll take you down there after breakfast" Negan said nonchalantly. "You wanna starve while the redneck eats, fine with me."

While the others at her table ate, Michonne turned and glanced over at the wives. Tynesha sat 3 wives away from Michonne, and Michonne noticed that one of the women slipped Tynesha one of her strips of bacon. Tynesha glanced at the other wife and nodded in thanks before quickly eating the bacon. The wheels in Michonne's head began to spin.

 _Maybe Tynesha would be willing to help us bring down Negan if we can guarantee her safety, and her baby's. Maybe all the wives would be willing to help. If I could get them on my side we could kill him and end this._

Michonne spent the rest of her time at the breakfast table deciding what she would say to Tynesha if she got the chance.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Negan led Michonne back down to the basement to see Daryl. When Negan flipped on the lights to the small room, Daryl was practically in the same spot he was when they'd left him hours ago. Michonne walked over to the cage and kneeled down in front of it.

"Daryl?" she said softly. He slowly opened his eyes as much as he could as they were still purple and swollen. He seemed to be taken aback by her outfit.

"'Chonne?" he asked with a questioning look.

"Yea. I know." she replied, "My punishment. Here, I brought you something" she said as she pushed the plate through the bars. Daryl looked down at the food weakly.

"You eat?" he asked.

"Don't worry" she assured him, "This is for you. Please eat it. You need to eat."

He looked over her shoulder at Negan who was standing by the door to the room watching.

"He hurt you?" Daryl asked softly.

"No" Michonne said, "I'm ok. He's making us stay another day. More punishment. But we'll be home tomorrow."

"OK, you gave him the food" Negan boomed from the doorway, "let's go"

"Just one more day Daryl" Michonne reassured him, "I'll be ok. You eat." She then stood up and walked out the door that Negan was holding. Negan watched Michonne walk past him out the door, not hiding the fact that he was checking her out. He then turned to Daryl and winked before he turned out the lights again and slammed the door.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After leaving the basement, Negan had forced Michonne to walk around the Sanctuary with him as he took care of business. She knew he was doing it to further humiliate her, but she was at the point where she couldn't be humiliated further. As she walked she kept her head high and stared straight ahead, ignoring the stares of everyone around her. She pretended that she was fully dressed, and she pictured in her head all the ways she would make Negan suffer as soon as she got the chance. She also used the fact that Negan was parading her around as an opportunity to memorize the layout of the Sanctuary. She may not have been able to see how she arrived here, but she sure as hell would remember how the inside looked in case she ever came back.

In the afternoon, Negan allowed her to return to the wives' quarters until he dragged her back out for dinner. Michonne figured this was the perfect opportunity to talk to Tynesha and try to make an ally. She found her in the kitchen area, drinking a glass of water as she stared out the window.

"You gonna put those boobs away any time soon?" Tynesha asked as she continued to stare out the glass.

"I wish I could, but Negan won't let me" Michonne responded, sitting in one of the chairs.

"What the fuck does he find so interesting about you? He's been ignoring the rest of us since you've got here." Tynesha grumbled, turning around and facing Michonne.

"I wish I knew what he found so interesting, I'd stop doing it immediately."

"I think he likes your ass. He's an ass man. I used to be his favorite. These other wives… let's just say they're not as endowed."

Michonne chuckled. "Yea, I know someone else he has that in common with" she said quietly, more to herself than Tynesha.

"Why are you still here?" Tynesha asked, "aren't you supposed to go home today?"

"Yea, that's kind of a long story, but things didn't work out the way I'd like" Michonne said with a sigh. They were both quiet for a while, and Michonne decided to cut to the chase.

"I think you have a problem, and I think I can help" Michonne said.

Tynesha's head snapped up quickly. "What are you talking about?"

"Tynesha, I know about the baby. And I know you want to leave. I can help you do that. My people can."

Tynesha stared at Michonne in shock, and then her eyes narrowed. "I don't know what you're talking about. What baby?"

"Negan's baby. I know you're pregnant. I know you want to protect it…" Michonne began.

"Fuck you. You don't know shit. Stop talking about things you know nothing about. Did Negan put you up to this? Are you a spy or something?" Tynesha yelled, backing away from Michonne.

"No. But I know what it's like to want to protect your baby. I know you know you deserve better than being Negan's fuck for the night. Or his eye candy. I know you're funny and I can tell you're strong. You're a survivor like me. Don't you want your baby to survive too?" Michonne asked.

"You think you can help me?" Tynesha said, a tear streaming down her face, "You can't even help yourself! You think you can help me leave here? _You_ can't even leave here. Not unless Negan lets you. You're walking around in fucking underwear bitch! What the fuck can you do for me? You know what happened to the last girl that got pregnant with Negan's baby? She fucking disappeared. Just gone. He never mentioned her again."

Michonne was silent. "If you help me and my people, we can help you and your baby. If you give us information to help bring down Negan, everyone can live a better life, including you. You're his wife, you can get closer to him than anyone else can. You know him better than anyone else can. You're the key to ending all of this. My people will protect you. I will."

Tynesha stared Michonne down.

"I know it sounds crazy, but what do you have to lose? If we fail, Negan will make you and your baby 'disappear'. If we succeed, Negan is no longer in power and you and your baby have a chance to live. Tynesha, we can do this, we just need to work together."

 ** _Author's note_** ** _: Thank you for all of the reviews I really appreciate it! As I said in the previous chapters, this was intended to be a one shot, so I'm just winging these chapters and making stuff up as I go. If you have any ideas for what you'd like to happen feel free to let me know. Thanks!_**


	7. Chapter 7

Carl and Rick woke up early the day Michonne was supposed to return. They got Judith bathed and dressed and made her breakfast, but neither of them ate. Rick usually would suggest that Carl eat, but he knew Carl was just as nervous as he was and he didn't push it. Everyone was on high alert, and they had piled all the supplies that they were giving to Negan in the center of town. Rick took Judith to be watched by an elderly couple, far from he and Carl. He didn't want Negan to think Judith was connected to their family in any way.

Carl, Rosita, and Father Gabriel were manning the gates, when Rick met them there after dropping off Judith. Rick climbed up to the perch that Carl was on and stared over the top of the gates. Carl took in the worried look in Rick's eyes.

"She's ok dad. She's coming back today" he reassured Rick.

"Yea I know" Rick agreed, "she and Daryl."

The two peered into the distance in silence together. They paced around the perch for hours, waiting for a glimpse of a car, or any kind of movement, but there was nothing. Every hour that dragged along caused Rick's stomach to tighten more and more. He was so worried he physically felt sick. Rick noticed that Carl looked the same way he felt. Carl was pacing back and forth and he looked pale.

"Carl, you should go back to the house for a little while. Get something to eat, it's almost three and you haven't eaten anything yet. I promise if there's a sign of something I'll send someone to get you." Rick suggested.

"No" Carl said, staring out into the distance. "I don't want to eat and I have to be here when she gets back. I have to."

Rick just nodded. He felt the same way Carl did. The watch shift changed and Rosita and Father Gabriel were replaced by new people, and still Rick and Carl waited in silence for Negan to show, but there was nothing.

It was almost six o'clock when Rick said "I'm going out to search for her."

Carl nodded and followed his father to an available van. Rosita and Spencer who happened to be outside saw the duo getting into a van and ran over.

"Rick, what are you doing?" Rosita asked with concern.

"I'm going to look for Michonne" he said matter of factly as he started the engine.

"I'm coming" Rosita responded and immediately jumped into the van. Spencer followed suit and the four of them drove out of Alexandria's gates.

They traveled along the roads searching for any Saviors' vehicles.

 _Maybe they ran into a herd? Or they went off the road? Maybe she's hurt. Maybe she had to escape from them and she's on her way back?_ Rick thought.

Rick tried to think of any scenario that would explain why no one had shown up but he couldn't.

They scanned the roads in silence until it got too dark to stay out. Rick knew they had to go back home but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud, and Rosita and Spencer didn't have the nerve to tell him. Finally, Carl said "dad we have to go back now."

Rick sighed and nodded, his hopes of finding Michonne tonight deflating. He turned the car around and headed back to Alexandria, hoping she'd be there when he got back.

When they arrived, the supplies were still piled up, and Rick was crushed.

"They wouldn't travel in the dark. They're not coming tonight." He said to Carl, as Rosita and Spencer climbed out of the car.

"What happened? Why didn't they come back?" Carl asked, even though he knew his father knew just as much as he did.

Rick opened the door to the car and sighed. "I don't know Carl. Something must've happened."

"Dad she's ok. She said she'll be back. She keeps her promises." Carl said with a confident voice.

"Yea Carl, she'll be back soon" Rick said, but it was unconvincing.

"You know Michonne, she is a survivor. She will come home. She can survive anything."

"I know Carl. I know she can. But if she's not back by tomorrow afternoon, we're gonna go find Negan and kill him." Rick said calmly.

Carl's head snapped up at Rick's words. A small smile flashed across his face. "Yea. We will."

"Go ahead home. I'm gonna be on watch tonight. Make sure you eat something." Rick said in a voice that Let Carl know he was serious.

Carl nodded. "Ok dad".

As Carl walked off towards the house, Rick headed to the watch post, dismissing the person on duty. He sat down and rested the rifle in his lap. As he sat there alone, he thought of all the possible reasons Michonne wasn't back yet. As much as he tried to focus on watching the horizon for cars or signs of anyone approaching, he couldn't stop his mind from wandering to all the things Negan could be doing to his love.

 _It has to be Negan. Is he keeping her to mess with me? Was he planning on keeping her all along? What is he doing to her? Did he beat her? Rape her? Is he holding her prisoner? Is Daryl even still alive?_

In his mind he pictured Michonne chained up in a dark basement somewhere, beaten, raped, and alone. A sob burst from Rick's mouth and he put his hand over his mouth to stop himself from making noise, as his body shook with his cries.

 _I will find you. I will find you Michonne. Please just be ok._

Rick took two deep breaths and wiped the tears from his eyes. Crying wouldn't help Michonne. Planning would. He spent the rest of the night outlining a plan to find Negan, get Michonne back, and murder him if she was harmed in any way.

Meanwhile, Carl had just put Judith in her crib. He went downstairs to grab an apple and a glass of water. He told his father he'd eat, but he wasn't in the mood for a meal. Not with Michonne missing. Not when he knew she was with a murderous lunatic who had already shown that he had some kind of attraction to her. Carl set the apple and glass of water in front of himself and then sat at the kitchen table and pulled out his gun. He unloaded it and began to clean it thoroughly. After he removed any dirt from the barrel, he carefully reloaded it and placed it in it's holder on his hip. He was ready. If Negan had harmed her, Carl would shoot first and ask questions later.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Tynesha shook her head at Michonne and backed away, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"You can't beat Negan. You can only survive him. You're as helpless against Negan as I am. If you try to do anything he'll kill you and your people." Tynesha said.

"He can't hold everyone down forever. He's one man. He has weaknesses…"

"No!" Tynesha said loudly, "I can't. Don't ask me to."

Michonne just stared as Tynesha turned around and faced the window again. Michonne, realizing that Tynesha was done with the conversation, turned around and went back into the living room.

 _A few hours later_

Michonne's lack of sleep or food was starting to take its toll on her body. She sat on the couch, still in the lingerie Negan had forced her to wear, but as she sat there she could feel her eyes closing involuntarily. She'd realize she was sleeping and jolt herself awake, but within a few minutes her eyes would start to close again. After a few times of being jolted awake, her tired body finally overrides her brain and she fell into a deep sleep.

 _She was sitting in the living room of her home. It was dark in and outside the house, it seemed like no one was home. She slowly rose from the couch and looked around the empty house._

 _"_ _Rick?" she called, "Carl?"_

 _There was no response. "Judy?" Michonne tried, but she could tell there was no one home._

 _She walked to the front door and opened it, freezing in horror. Her community was on fire, the houses were burning and there were bodies in the street. The front gates had been knocked down. She could smell burning wood and flesh, but there were no sounds. Not a single living thing. It was like a graveyard. She stepped off the porch into the desolate town, searching for anyone who was alive. She searched for her family, her friends, but Alexandria was a ghost town._

 _Negan. She knew that Negan had done this._

 _"_ _Rick?!" she called down the street, knowing in her heart that he, Carl, and Judith were gone. Dead. As was all her friends and family. She was truly alone. A scream escaped her mouth as she collapsed on the ground in tears, willing herself to die too. Suddenly she heard shuffling behind her. She turned around to see a walker Rick making his way towards her, his mouth open in a snarl, his blue eyes now dead and bloodshot red as he growled and reached towards her. Not fighting it, she closed her eyes and waited for his bite._

Michonne's eyes shot open as she was startled awake, and then she got a second shock as Negan's eyes were staring down into hers. She leaped off the couch which she had been laying down on and scrambled to her feet, her heart racing.

"Damn, you ok?" Negan asked, "you were fucking screaming in your sleep."

Michonne stood there panting, trying to get her bearings and calm down. Negan looked her up and down, staring when he realized her robe was now open and he could see every curve of her body. Not like the sheer robe hid much, but the sight of her bare skin made him itch to touch it. Michonne quickly slowed down her breathing and noticed Negan's eyes rolling up and down her body. She pulled the robe together and tied it with the belt that was attached.

"Are you ok?" Negan asked again, concern creeping into his eyes.

Michonne didn't answer.

"Fine. Ladies!" Negan called angrily. As usual, his wives quickly made their way into the room, each kissing him as they arrived. "Let's go eat" he said quickly, grabbing two of his wives, one on each arm, and walking out of the room leaving the other women to follow.

Michonne was grateful he didn't want her to walk with him. She was still upset from her dream, still picturing Rick's dead eyes staring at her. What scared her the most was she knew if he wanted to, Negan could do what she'd dreamed. He could destroy everything, kill everyone that ever meant anything to her, and they wouldn't be able to do much about it.

During dinner Michonne sat a few chairs away from Negan and she was grateful for it. _Maybe his fascination with me is wearing off_ she thought to herself. She looked over at him out of the corner of her eye and could see one of his wives was trying to talk to him, but he was staring over his wife's head at Michonne, barely blinking. _Guess not._

Still looking straight ahead, Michonne watched Tynesha out of the corner of her eye, who was sitting on her other side. Tynesha was moving rice and beans around her plate, but she didn't seem to be eating much. She must've noticed Michonne watching her because she looked up and glanced her way before she shoved a forkful of rice into her mouth. Michonne wondered if it was a mistake asking Tynesha for her help. The woman was in a dire situation, but she had lived under Negan's rule for so long, maybe she was brainwashed into believing that he was invincible. Even though she didn't agree to help, Michonne sensed that she wouldn't tell Negan about their conversation. _I hope I'm right_ Michonne thought.

Michonne looked down into her untouched plate. She was starting to feel dizzy from her two day fast, but she knew the end was near. She was going home tomorrow, no matter what.

After Negan finished eating, he called two of his men over and whispered something into their ear. He then stood up and left the cafeteria. The two men stood behind Michonne, alarming her and causing her to grab the fork that was on the table in front of her.

"None of that" one of the men said, nodding towards her weapon. "We ain't gonna hurt you. Negan asked us to bring you to the garden. Let's go."

Michonne snarled in annoyance, but dropped her fork on the table and stood. The wives that were at the table watched as the two men led Michonne away. She was taken into an elevator and brought up to the rooftop garden that she'd been taken to on her first day at the Sanctuary. The two men led her inside and then turned around and left. She was alone. She paced up and down, anxious about why she was here and what Negan expected from her. She walked up to one of the large windows and could see her reflection in the glass. She felt vulnerable walking around in underwear, being held prisoner in an unknown location with a man who had already slaughtered two of her friends and tortured another. She sighed and adjusted the robe, trying to hide more of herself. _Just a few more hours left Michonne, then you're going home._ She took the time to think back to her last night with Rick, the way he made her feel loved and safe. She missed him and Carl and Judy so much. Before she could stop it, a tear quickly rolled down her face, and she moved to wipe it away.

The sound of the doors opening startled her, and she spun around to see Negan entering the garden.

"Hi" he said as he walked towards her. Michonne stood where she was and watched him, her eyes narrowing as he approached.

Negan cleared his throat and put his hands on his hips, giving Michonne one of his maniacal smiles. "Guess you're wondering why you're up here huh?" he asked.

Michonne just looked ahead blankly as Negan continued.

"Shit, I don't know how to say this, so I'm just gonna fucking say it. I can't fucking get you out of my head Michonne."

Michonne's eyes widened in shock. "What?" she gasped.

"I've never felt this way about anybody. Not even Lucille. It's actually fucking annoying as fuck." He sighed as her expression turned to disgust. He took a step forward and she took a step back, bumping against the glass of a window. Her eyes searched around, looking for a possible escape route if she had to run.

He saw her eyes searching around and he stopped moving closer, dropping to his knees in front of her, startling her. "Stay Michonne. Please. You could have a good fucking life here. I can be different if that's what you need. You could help me run things the way you want them to go. I can change" Negan begged her.

Michonne opened her mouth and then closed it again, not believing that he was begging her to stay here. She inched away from him further and he didn't follow her, staying on his knees and watching her intently.

 _Is he serious? He's lost his mind!_

"So if I say no are you going to throw me into a cage?" she asked, finally regaining her voice.

"No. But I'll be fucking disappointed." Negan responded.

Michonne went quiet again as she thought.

"If you're serious about what you're saying and you really want me to stay that much, let Daryl out of the cage." She commanded.

Negan got up from the floor and Michonne tensed up again. She didn't trust him for a second.

"Ok done. I'll let the little bitch out. Come." Negan said as he turned around and started walking. Michonne followed him on high alert, not knowing what he had planned. He took her downstairs to Daryl's cell and unlocked the door. Daryl had eaten the food she brought him for breakfast, and was now sitting upright against the cage walls. His eyes opened as the lights came on.

"C'mon bitch, your owner's come to pick you up" Negan taunted as he swung the cage door open. Daryl looked at the open door in surprise. His eyes then moved from Michonne to Negan, obviously thinking it was a trick.

"It's ok Daryl, you can come out" Michonne said, reaching out her hand for him to take. He stared at her hand for a few seconds, still skeptical about getting out the cage, but then he reached for it and she helped him crawl out of the enclosure. Once out he plopped on the floor, seemingly unable to stand.

"Get up" Negan commanded him.

Daryl tried to stand but immediately fell back on his butt. Michonne put an arm around him and gave him support so that he could get to his feet, but he was so shaky that if she let go he'd fall on the floor.

"He needs a bed" Michonne said, looking towards Negan. He led them down the hallway to a cell that had a cot and a chair. Michonne helped Daryl onto the bed and turned to look at Negan. "I'm going to stay here with him" She declared.

Negan rolled his eyes. "Fine, but think about what I told you. You see I'm willing to cooperate. Give me an answer when I come to get you in the morning." Negan looked Michonne up and down one more time and then turned around and closed the room door, leaving the two of them alone.

Michonne dragged the chair up to the bed that Daryl was laying in and sat down next to him.

"Why'd he let me out?" Daryl asked softly.

Michonne sighed and held Daryl's hand. "He asked me to stay here. He… he likes me, or is infatuated with me or something. I don't know. But he wants me to stay here."

Daryl squinted his swollen eyes and shook his head in disbelief. "What? Michonne did he… did he touch you?" Daryl asked. Michonne looked up to stare at Daryl. "No. He hasn't. This outfit is the worst he's done to me. He said I can stay and change the way things work here. Maybe… maybe I can get him to leave Alexandria alone. I can keep everyone safe."

Daryl shook his head. "No Michonne. Nothing is worth you staying here. We can end this, but we're not sacrificing you. That man is a monster. Look at what he's done…" Daryl suddenly paused and wiped his eyes. "He's a murderer and a piece of shit. I'll be damned if he turns you into one of them wives he has. And you know Rick will come for you if you stay here. Think about Judith and Carl. Think about everyone who loves you."

Michonne stroked Daryl's hand. "I am"

"Don't do it" Daryl warned. "Nothing is worth that".

Michonne nodded her head. "You need to get some sleep Daryl, we have a long ride tomorrow. I'll stay up, I'll keep watch."

Daryl began to protest but Michonne stared him down. "Go. To. Sleep" she demanded. He quickly gave up his protests and closed his eyes. He laid quietly for a few minutes as she sat in the chair thinking about her situation. "'Chonne?" Daryl called softly, with his eyes still closed. "Yea?" Michonne asked. "You look hot" he whispered. She gave a surprised chuckle and smiled, and within minutes Daryl was softly snoring.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Michonne must've dozed off for a few minutes because she was rudely awakened by the cell door being slammed open and hitting the wall. She jumped from her chair, instinctively reaching for her katana which wasn't on her back. Daryl was awake and attempting to lift himself into a seated position on the bed.

Negan and three guards entered the small cell. "Morning Michonne" Negan said pleasantly, "You're looking as beautiful as ever. Have you made your decision?" he asked, a glint of hope crossing his face.

Michonne swallowed and then said "I'm not staying".

Negan's face changed to anger. "Fine. Crawl back to fucking _Rick_. See how much better your life is" he spat. "Have fun finding supplies for me."

Negan nodded and the guards quickly wrapped blindfolds around both her and Daryl's eyes. They were then dragged from the room. As she walked she could hear Daryl grunting as the guards roughly guided him, probably pressing on his many bruises. They walked for a while until she could feel that they were outside. She felt gravel under the stiletto heels she was wearing, making it hard for her to walk. She tripped once or twice, but finally she could hear a car door opening and a man said "watch your head". Someone pushed down on her head as she climbed into a van. She could feel Daryl roughly pushed in next to her.

"Let's go visit your boyfriend shall we?" Negan called from the front of the van. The van started and took off down the road. As they traveled, Michonne could hear Daryl breathing heavily next to her, and could feel the bumps from potholes. She reached over to where she knew Daryl was, and felt for his hand, quickly patting it to give him reassurance. She was surprised when he held on to her hand and squeezed it. She squeezed back and they sat hand in hand as the van drove. They must've been traveling for at least 45 minutes when the van squealed to an abrupt stop, throwing both of them against the seats in front of them.

Michonne could hear the driver mumble "What the fuck?". Suddenly Negan began to laugh. "Well lookie here Michonne, we have company. It's for you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxx

Rick, Carl, Rosita, Father Gabriel, Spencer and Tobin had been driving around the roads for hours searching for any signs of Saviors, or a car wreck which could explain where Michonne was. Rick hadn't slept all night, and judging by the bags under Carl's eyes he hadn't either. They woke up that morning, loaded the supplies for Negan into a truck, just in case Michonne was ok and they ran into the Saviors, and they set off searching. Two hours in, they ran into the convoy of cars and vans and Rick knew immediately it was Negan.

Rick and Carl immediately hopped out of the car and walked towards the vehicles. The rest of the group hung back with their weapons at the ready.

Negan climbed out of the van with a big grin on his face. "Just the steer I wanted to see, how motherfucking convenient it is to meet you on the road like this" he announced.

"Where's Michonne?" Rick said, walking straight up to Negan ready for a fight. Carl stood next to him with his finger on the trigger of his gun.

"Well, that's part of the reason I was on my way to your little hovel of a town. I can't wait till you see what I've done to your girl."

"Where the fuck is she?" Rick said, his eyes widening in a panic. Carl pulled his gun and leveled it at Negan's head causing the rest of Negan's men to draw their weapons.

"Oh no no no Rick" Negan said with a smile. "You and your mini me are at a disadvantage here. You go around pointing weapons at people, and poof, there goes your boy's other eye. And he'll never get any pussy if he's blind. Who wants _that_ shit?"

Rick looked over at Carl. "Carl, put the gun down" he said. Carl stared at Negan with disgust, but aimed the gun downward."

"Good boy Carl. Wouldn't want anything to happen to mommy would you?" Negan asked. Carl practically snarled at Negan.

Negan chuckled and brought his attention back to Rick. "Where's my supplies?" he asked.

"Where's Michonne?" Rick asked again.

Negan laughed and began to circle Rick and Carl. "Let me make this clear Rick" Negan whispered into Rick's ear from behind, "You do what I want, when I ask you to do it. If I wanted, I could just shoot you and your bunch of losers, take the supplies, and no one would be the wiser. Fucking kiss my ass like a man, and you might just get your boo back. Now where the fuck are my supplies?"

Rick glanced at Carl who was shaking in rage. He knew he had to give in. "They're in the van" Rick grumbled. "Good boy" Negan said, patting Rick on the head like a dog. Negan motioned to some of his men to get the supplies out of the van.

Rick and the rest of the Alexandrians stood there helpless as Negan's men took all the boxes from the van they'd brought. There was still no sign of Michonne or Daryl. After the van was loaded, Negan stretched as if he'd just woken up from a long nap. He turned and began walking back to his van.

"Well, I guess I'll be going then, nice doing business with you Dick. Until we meet again…" Rick leaped from his spot and tackled Negan to the ground, pressing his gun to the back of his head. Carl held his gun up to cover his father, as the other Alexandrians took positions to cover both Carl and Rick.

"Don't fucking play with me" Rick growled into Negan's ear. "Give me Michonne and Daryl NOW, or I swear I'll shoot you now and deal with whatever consequences come after that. If they're not here, you're not walking away from this."

Negan was shocked by the surprise attack, but he quickly laughed it off. "You sound just like her" he chuckled, "and look at the cyclops, he's ready to shoot me too! This is rich."

Rick clicked the safety off his gun.

"Stop! Stop it!" Rick could hear someone yelling from the van. He immediately recognized Michonne's voice. "Michonne!" Rick yelled, temporarily distracted, and Negan used the opportunity to spin around and kick Rick in the gut, making him drop the gun. Carl moved forward and pointed his gun at Negan's head, making him freeze.

"Let her and Daryl go NOW" Carl demanded. Negan gave Carl a big smile. "I really like you kid, you have the biggest pair of motherfucking balls I've ever seen on a kid your size. I'm impressed. How did a badass like you end up with such a wimp of a father I'll never know. Michonne must've taught you well" Negan said with a wink. "I'll let them out the van, but you and the rest of your loser friends need to put your guns down and kneel".

Carl looked over to Rick and Rick nodded slightly. Carl put his gun down and then kneeled in the dirt, as did all of the other Alexandrians.

"Good" Negan said, rising and dusting himself off. "Let 'em out".

Rick could hear the doors to the van slide open and he could see Daryl exit first. He was in bad shape. He looked like he had been beaten badly, and he had dried blood stuck to him from the gunshot wound that hadn't been treated by a doctor. His eyes were also black and blue, but when Rick noticed two of his fingers were missing he almost broke down in tears. His friend had been tortured.

Carl's eyes widened in surprise at Daryl's state, but he was glad that he was still alive. Daryl's appearance made Carl immediately nervous for Michonne. Did they do the same things to her?

Rick kept staring at the van until he saw Michonne being pulled out. Both he, Carl, and the rest of the Alexandrians stared in disbelief when he saw what Michonne was wearing. Rick's mouth dropped open and a blind rage seared through him.

 _Negan made her wear that. Negan saw my Michonne naked. He humiliated her._

Rick was about to jump from the ground and tackle Negan for a second time when Carl beat him to it. Carl punched Negan in the face and stomach so quickly no one had time to react.

"What the fuck?" Negan shouted as Carl continued to pummel him. Michonne who had taken off her blindfold saw what was unfolding. She also saw Negan reach for his gun. She ran towards the fighting pair and ripped Carl off Negan, throwing herself on top of Carl as a shield, just as Negan aimed his gun.

Negan was panting from the beating he'd just received and his hand was shaking as he aimed his gun at Carl. Rick crawled over and placed his body in front of Michonne and Carl.

"Shit" Negan said, wiping some blood from his nose. "If I wanted to hurt her kid, I would've. You've got a fucking wild right hook. Good aim for a cyclops."

Michonne could feel Carl shaking underneath her and she put a hand on his chest to calm him down.

Negan stared at the three of them on the ground in front of him and slowly lowered his arm. "I can't believe you chose him over me Michonne" Negan said sadly, shaking his head. "You're a queen among fucking peasants that's for sure." Negan spit on the ground in front of Rick and then turned on his heel, signaling his men to leave.

Rick, Michonne, and Carl stayed on the ground until the cars drove off. Rick then stood and helped Michonne up as Carl got to his feet. Rick took his t-shirt off, and helped Michonne to put it on, as Carl took his outer shirt off and gave it to Michonne who wrapped it around her waist. Rick quickly kissed her on the lips, and then he and Carl helped Daryl over to the van so they could go home.

 _ **Author's Note:**_ _ **Thanks for the suggestions, I tried stringing together some of the things you guys requested, hope you liked it. The next chapter will probably be the last one, so if you have some suggestions for what you want to happen, let me know and I'll see if I can incorporate that in. And also, please leave a review!**_


	8. Chapter 8

The Grimes family finally arrived at Alexandria's gates, and Michonne couldn't have been happier to see the tall steel walls. On the ride back home, Rick had periodically glanced at her as she rode shot gun. She knew he was trying to discreetly check her for bruises, both physical and emotional, but she couldn't look back at him. She was afraid that she'd lose her grip on her emotions if she met his curious eyes, so she spent her time staring out the window, or sneaking looks backwards to check on Carl and Daryl.

When they pulled past the gates, Rick kept driving until he pulled up to the Grimes' residence. He turned to Michonne and said "Go ahead home. I'm gonna take Daryl to the infirmary and make sure he's ok and then I'll be back." Michonne moved to get out of the car when Rick grabbed her wrist gently, causing her to turn back around. "I'll be back soon, ok?" he asked, caressing her wrist with his thumb. She nodded and quickly exited the car, trying to get into the house as quickly as possible as she had no pants on and was only wearing Rick's t-shirt, and Carl's flannel shirt tied around her waist.

As Michonne sprinted to the front door she could hear Carl say to Rick "I'll go with her". Michonne could hear Carl following behind her as she entered the house. Michonne sighed with relief as she entered the house and closed her eyes for a second. She was home. Finally.

"Are you…" Carl was about to ask, but then he changed his mind. "I'm… I'm glad you're back" Carl said behind her.

She smiled and turned around to face him. "Come here" she said, reaching for him. He wrapped his arms around her and she held him close. "I am too. I told you I'd be back."

He nodded into her shoulder. "Dad and I knew when you'd come back you'd want to take a bath. We put all your bath stuff in the downstairs bathroom. Your lotion and stuff."

Tears came to Michonne's eyes as she thought about how thoughtful her boys were. She nodded and choked up before saying "thank you". Carl gave her a half smile and nodded as she headed off towards the downstairs bathroom. "Your towel and your robe are in there too".

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Rick was standing by Daryl's bed as Rosita checked out his wounds quietly. "How's the pain?" she asked, staring into the empty holes where his fingers used to be. He shrugged and didn't answer. "We don't have any pain medication, the Saviors took it the last time they were here. We do have some antibiotics though, I'll give you that for the gun shot, and the bruises." Daryl just looked straight ahead, still not responding. Rosita wrapped up his hand with gauze and put her hand on his face, startling him.

"We all missed you Daryl. Glad you're back." She gave him a peck on the cheek and then left he and Rick alone.

They were silent for a few more moments, neither knowing how to start a conversation. Finally, Daryl surprised Rick by speaking first.

"That piece of shit tortured me. Had his men dump hot water and then cold water on me. Beat me 'til I was unconscious, starved me… but I never gave in to them. I fought." Daryl said, a tear escaping down his face. "I got one of his guards, knocked his teeth out. That's when they took my first finger."

Rick sat down on a chair besides Daryl's bed, listening intently.

"I think he thought that would break me, but it didn't. I still didn't tell them anything they wanted to know. I didn't do what they wanted me to do. I think he realized that beating me wasn't gonna work. He tried to make me kill for him. He brought me some guy that had done something wrong… he said if I stabbed him he'd let me go home. He gave me a knife to do it and I tried to stab a guard instead. That's how I lost the other finger. After that he kept me in a cage. No lights, no food, no human contact. I thought they forgot about me. I thought they'd just let me die in there. And… and I accepted that. Thought that was what I deserved. I got Glenn killed and I deserved it…" Daryl said, and finally he broke down sobbing.

Rick looked on, his heart breaking for the man he thought of as his brother. He knew that he couldn't say anything to make Daryl feel better, but he still wanted to try. "Daryl. We all know you didn't expect things to happen the way they did. You didn't know what Negan would do. We don't blame you. And I'm glad you're home brother."

Daryl cried for a little while longer before pulling himself together enough to speak again.

"When Michonne got there, she took care of me. She was the first person I'd seen in days. She took care of my wounds, and I could see that Negan respected her. She had Negan eating out of her hands. Even after he punished her…"

"Punished her?" Rick said, suddenly bristling.

"Yea, that outfit she was wearing. Punishment for punching him in the face."

Rick smiled and chuckled to himself. "She punched him?"

"Even after what she did, she still had him by the balls. The next day she came and brought me food. It was the first meal I'd had in six days. And Negan allowed her to bring it to me. 'Chonne… you're just lucky to have her Rick."

Rick smiled and patted Daryl's hand. "Yea, I know."

"Go back to her" Daryl said. As Rick got up to do just that, Daryl spoke again.

"And Rick? Where's Carol?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After Michonne took a bath and got dressed in comfortable clothes she felt much better. She walked into the living room to find Carl and Judy sitting on the couch watching a movie. Carl noticed her and moved over so that she could join them. As soon as Judy saw Michonne, she crawled out of Carl's lap and reached for her, making whining sounds. Michonne picked her up and Judy immediately bit her face, leaving a ring of spit.

Michonne chuckled and snuggled her face into Judy's neck. "I missed you too Judy pie". Judy happily bounced in Michonne's lap and got a death grip on Michonne's hair, not letting go.

"She was fussy the whole time you were gone" Carl offered. "Especially bed time, 'cuz you weren't there to sing to her. Dad tried but… he wasn't fooling anyone. Especially not her."

Michonne smiled and kissed Judy on the forehead. "I won't leave you again Judy, ok?" Michonne asked as the baby happily cooed.

"I missed you so much mom" Carl whispered. Michonne's head shot towards Carl's face. She thought of herself as his mom, but to hear him say it out loud took her breath away.

She wrapped one arm around Carl and pulled him in closer. "I missed you too son." Judy, wanting to join in on the snuggle fest, held on to Michonne's neck as the three of them stayed wrapped around each other.

"I would've killed him" Carl admitted quietly. "If you didn't pull me off, I would've killed him for what he did to you. I wanted to slit his throat. I wanted to shoot him in the face for hurting you, for embarrassing you, for touching you." Carl paused as he thought. "Does that make me a monster?"

Michonne turned to look at Carl who was still facing forward, his eyes on the tv but his gaze far away.

"No!" Michonne said, taking his face in her hands and turning it towards her. "You're not a monster Carl. Anyone would feel that way. I feel that way too. If he had hurt you, I would do the same. But sometimes you have to put your anger aside to get what you want. When you jumped on him he almost shot you. I was scared for you. Please don't do something like that again."

Carl nodded but didn't say anything else, and the three of them continued to watch the movie that only Judy really seemed to be paying attention to.

A few minutes later the door opened and Rick walked into the house. He kicked his shoes off and plopped onto the couch, quickly grabbing Michonne around the waist and kissing her so passionately, Carl almost took Judy and headed upstairs. Michonne who was completely taken off guard was just along for the ride as Rick poured two days of worry, stress, and heartache into his kiss. The two of them stopped only to come up for air, and even then Rick was staring into Michonne's eyes.

"Umm... should I leave?" Carl asked. Rick looked over Michonne's shoulder to see Carl's shocked expression with his hands over Judith's eyes. Rick quickly laughed at his expression.

"No. Don't leave" Rick said to Carl, even though he was staring at Michonne like she was a snack he wanted to devour. "I'm just grateful that your mom is home".

Michonne's eyes widened at Rick's words and she felt a tear come down her face. Rick took his thumb and wiped it away. "We're a family, and no one's ever gonna change that. We're gonna kill Negan. Together."

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

During the movie, the family of four curled up together. Rick sat on the couch with his feet propped up on the table, and both arms around Michonne who laid in his lap. Michonne's legs were stretched across Carl's who also had his feet resting on the table. Judy, who was thrilled to have her whole family in one spot, took the opportunity to jump from lap to lap, climbing over all three of them until she finally settled on snuggling into Carl's lap while sitting on Michonne's legs, and promptly fell asleep. Michonne was in heaven, spending time with her children as the love of her life held her in his arms. During the movie which she wasn't really watching, she'd sneak glances at Rick, and every time he'd know she was looking and quickly meet her gaze. She smiled to reassure him she was ok, and he'd squeeze her tighter.

After the movie, Carl said goodnight and headed upstairs with Judy. Michonne and Rick stayed in their spots on the couch, still clinging to each other.

"Are you ok?" he asked, after they had laid quiet for some time.

"Yea" she responded.

"When I saw you dressed like that... I thought..." Rick sighed. "I was pissed at him. I wanted to kill him with my bare hands. To think that he saw you like that. It makes my skin crawl."

"I know Rick. But he didn't touch me. He just wanted to get back at me for what I did to him."

"You punched him right?" Rick said.

Michonne looked up at Rick in surprise.

"Daryl told me."

Michonne chuckled. "He deserved it"

Rick's face got dark. "what did he do?"

Michonne sat up, removing herself from Rick's lap and laying back on the couch next to him, also propping her legs up on the table.

"He tried to kiss me" she admitted.

Rick let out a growl deep in his throat and Michonne grabbed his hand, interlacing her fingers with his.

"Tried is the key word. He didn't succeed. But once he got punched in the face he never tried again."

"So he made you wear lingerie?" Rick asked, shaking his head in disgust. Michonne, who was still in a good mood from being home with the people she loved tried joking with him. "What? You didn't like it?" She asked.

Michonne noticed the corner of Rick's mouth lifted slightly. "You looked hot, I just didn't want other people to see what's mine."

Michonne rubbed Rick's fingers suggestively with her thumb. She couldn't help but tease him a little more. "Daryl said the same thing".

Rick's brows furrowed and he looked so angry that she couldn't help but laugh. "I'm sorry" she said, reaching out to stroke his face, "I'll stop teasing you. Let me make it up to you?"

Rick's eyes quickly softened when he realized what she meant. She leaned over and kissed him gently, cradling his face in her hands. When she pulled back, all hints of anger were gone. She gave him a look that said _let's go upstairs_. Rick stood up and pulled her up from her seat. He then went to the door, checking all the locks and turning the lights off. When he returned, she held his hand and led him up the steps to their bedroom.

"Sit on the chair" Michonne ordered, pointing to the one chair in their room. Rick looked confused as to why she'd ask him to sit there, but he sat down obediently as Michonne closed the door. She walked over to the CD player that was on the nightstand, and thumbed through some of the CDs, searching for what she wanted.

Rick watched her with curiosity as she found what she was looking for and set it aside. She then made her way over to the dresser they shared and lit the candles, causing them to cast an orange glow throughout the room.

She looked back at Rick and almost laughed at his confused expression. "Relax" she assured him, "you're gonna like this".

She went back over to the CD player and popped the cd in, pressing the next button until her desired song was playing. The sound of harp strings tinkled through the speakers and a soulful voice moaned.

"What song is this?" Rick asked.

"This Woman's Work by Maxwell. It's from a movie called Love and Basketball. I fell in love with it as a teenager and I always wanted to do this." She said, walking towards him slowly.

"Do what?" Rick asked, licking his lips at the way she was looking at him.

"Give my man a lap dance to this song."

Rick's eyes opened wider as Michonne sashayed over to him and straddled his lap, gyrating her hips as she kissed him deeply.

"Mmmm" Rick groaned, and he roughly grabbed her behind.

She kept her hips moving to the slow beat as she continued kissing him, threading her fingers through his hair. The only thing that could be heard was the song and their soft panting as they devoured each other. Michonne pulled back from his lips and ran her tongue down Rick's neck, causing him to throw his head back to expose it more to her. She made it down to his collar bone and ran her tongue back up his neck to his ear, slowly sucking on it.

Rick was groaning in pleasure and pressing Michonne's gyrating body closer to him, pressing her breasts against his chest. The soft music and Michonne's slow careful movements made Rick feel completely connected to her and loved. His eyes snapped open as Michonne lifted herself from his lap and moved behind him in the chair. She felt him tense up and promptly whispered "Relax. Close your eyes" into his ear.

He obeyed her command as she continued sucking his ear from behind his back as her hands wandered down the front of his shirt and began unbuttoning it. Once his shirt was unbuttoned, she pressed soft kisses to his neck and ran both hands down the front of his bare chest. Although most of her body was behind him, he could still feel her body moving to the slow beat and he couldn't help but reach behind himself and grab one of her thighs, opening his eyes. Michonne moved around to his front again and out of his reach as she continued to dance.

She reached down and then slowly pulled up her shirt, stripping it off in front of him as he watched her body in wonder. He had seen her naked so many times before, and yet every time he was captivated by her beauty. Once her shirt was off, she turned her back to him as she unbuckled her jeans and painstakingly moved them down her hips, giving him a front row seat to her luscious behind moving in time to the music. When the pants were half way down her ass, she turned around and looked Rick in the eye, rotating her hips and teasing him with the view of only half her ass.

"Take it off!" Rick yelled playfully, making her laugh.

She let her jeans drop to the floor and she stepped out of it, now only in her bra and panties. She moved within Rick's reach again and grabbed both of his hands, placing each one on her hips. As she continued to move, she reached behind herself and unclasped her bra letting it fall to the ground. Rick's hands moved upwards to pull her closer to him but she stepped out of his reach again, turning her back to him. She bent over and began to move her hips in a figure 8 motion, her ass only inches from his face.

"Oh shit" Rick whispered, getting a front row seat to the show of a lifetime. She began to move backwards, towards him, and lowered herself onto his lap again, this time facing away from him. He leaned in and kissed her bare back as she gyrated her ass in his lap. She leaned back further, pressing her back into his chest as she continued to move. He leaned over and swept her hair off her neck before biting and licking it. He knew he would probably leave marks, but he didn't care. He wanted her so badly. He reached around and caressed her nipples as she pressed her ass against his hardened crotch.

She began to moan as Ricks fingers made a trail down her body and into her panties, the only piece of clothing preventing her from being completely naked. "You're a great dancer" Rick mumbled into her ear as his fingers found what they were looking for, her entrance.

"Really?" she whispered between panted breaths.

"Yea. Why do you sound surprised?" Rick asked as he strummed her clit and bit into her back again.

"Mmmm…. I've… never done this before" she groaned, her voice reaching a higher pitch the more Rick worked her.

"This is your first lap dance? You were freaking amazing. I had no idea." Rick said in awe, running the hand that was not currently stroking her, up and down her thigh. Her ass was still moving as another slow song came on, and her movements were making Rick unbearably hard. He tried to relieve some of the pressure by rubbing up against her.

Michonne, feeling that he was ready, and knowing she most definitely was, once again lifted herself off him. "Wait what are you doing?" Rick groaned. She turned around and faced him again.

"What do you want Rick?" she asked. He stared back at her confused. "What do you need tonight? How can I make you happy?"

He smiled, recognizing his own words from the night before she left Alexandria. He pulled her closer to him and then yanked her downwards so that she was straddling his lap once again. "I need you right here, right now, in this chair" he said, staring into her eyes so intensely she almost got lost in them.

She nodded and reached down, unzipping his pants and pulling them down his hips. He lifted his ass off the chair to help her as she yanked his boxers and pants off simultaneously. She then playfully started to gyrate to the music again as she slowly lowered her panties, running her hands up and down her body as she did. "Dammit Michonne, get over here" Rick begged.

She had mercy on him as she climbed back on top of him in the chair, stroking his fully erect dick for a few seconds before sliding onto him. They both moaned at the sensation of coming together after the hell that they'd been through. Rick rapidly took Michonne's mouth on his, kissing her sloppily as the heat from her body tantalized him to propel himself into her. He put both hands on her hips and slammed her downwards onto his solid length, eliciting a cry from them both. Rick continued to move, taking the reins as he set the pace, rocking his hips and secretly loving the sounds Michonne was making.

She leaned over him, her body completely draped on his and her head resting on his shoulder as she absorbed the feel of him. Rick wanted her right now. He sped up the pace, thrusting into her so quickly that she could only just hold on for the ride. Once he could sense she was getting close, he would slow down again, causing her to moan in protest and ecstasy. He did this two times before Michonne caught on that he was trying to drive her crazy.

Wanting to get back at him, Michonne sank down on him deeper and started to dance against him again. She was satisfied when his mouth opened into an O, and she bit his neck leaving hickies all over his skin, doing what he had previously done to her. Now _he_ was moaning. He was so high off her he couldn't tease anymore, and began to bombard her with thrusts until both of them came simultaneously, collapsing into each other until their breathing slowed.

They stayed clinging to each other for a few minutes, until Rick lifted Michonne entirely and laid her on the bed, him crawling in next to her. He pulled up the blankets around her tired body and spooned her.

"You really ok?" he asked, sleepily.

"When I'm with you I always am" she replied softly with her eyes closed.

"Love you" Rick mumbled, but Michonne was already asleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

 _Three weeks later_

Alexandria had been left in relative peace, and runs were conducted every day to stock up on supplies for the next Saviors visit. All nearby stores and houses were cleaned out completely, and everyone knew that stocking for themselves _and_ the Savors was a rapidly downward spiral. Dissention was high, and Rick had to endure dirty looks and underhanded comments from his people. It pained Michonne to see what he was enduring, but no other option had presented itself, and she stood behind Rick no matter what.

And then one day the Saviors returned. They were reluctantly let in by Spencer, and they went to work, taking the supplies that had been piled up in the center of town. Michonne was surprised to see Negan wasn't among them. Not that she wanted to see or deal with him at all, but she found it strange.

The Alexandrians stood on their porches or in front of their houses and just watched angrily as their meager supplies were loaded into trucks.

Michonne was watching in muted rage, when a savior began to walk towards her with purpose. It was a young boy, probably only a few years older than Carl, and he seemed to approach her with caution. Her hand quickly went to her knife and she tensed up ready for a fight if she had to. To her surprise, the boy held out his hand which hid a small piece of paper. Michonne hesitated, not knowing what he wanted. His eyes were large and they darted around from side to side as if he was constantly on the look out, but he didn't say a word. He then looked directly at her with an expression that clearly said _take it_.

Michonne grabbed the paper from the boy, and he immediately turned around and headed back to the rest of the Saviors, continuing to load boxes.

Michonne understood that whatever he just gave her was supposed to be a secret. She stuck the paper into her jeans and moved inside her home before taking it back out. She was surprised to see it was a letter.

 _Hey bitch,_

 _I'm at the point where I can't hide my situation anymore. I know I need help and you're my only option. I can give you information but only after you agree to get me out of here. I can meet you at a gas station a distance away from the Sanctuary, but I need you to pick me up from there. It's on the corner of Forrest road and Evergreen street. I'll be there in two days at noon. If you don't come get me I'll have no one and I probably won't make it, but either way I'm never going back there again. You're really the only shot I have Michonne. This guy is my brother, he's leaving with me. He is the only person you can trust. If you are coming to get us just nod at him. He is mute but he'll understand._

 _Tynesha_

Michonne was surprised at the contents of the letter and her first thought was that it was a trick. Tynesha had not seemed that enthusiastic about working against Negan, but she also hadn't sold Michonne out to Negan either, at least not that she knew of. Michonne was very good at reading people, and she was fairly certain that Tynesha was on board, although a trap couldn't be counted out.

Michonne went to her window and glanced outside at the boy who had given her the letter. Tynesha's brother. She said that he was mute. She watched the boy work, keeping his head down as he carried the boxes, and staying out of everyone else's way. It seemed like they ignored him, they barely noticed him. Occasionally he would glance up at Michonne's house, seemingly waiting for her to reappear with a reply.

Michonne couldn't let this opportunity pass. Finally they had some kind of edge on Negan. Tynesha could possibly be the key to bringing Negan down. They had to try to help her. She would've asked Rick what he thought, but he was occupied. He was currently being yelled at by the Savior in charge of doing an inventory on the collected items. Michonne was enraged as she saw the man purposely bump into Rick, and watched as Rick's hands bunched into fists but he just stood there. Michonne's heart went out to Rick, who had to deal with these jerks month after month. They had had enough.

Michonne stepped off her porch and the boy immediately made eye contact. She made one quick nod and then went back inside.

 ** _Author's note_** ** _: So I was going to make the ending one long super chapter, but why not break it up? Thank you everyone for all the feedback and suggestions. This chapter had mixed in suggestions from zeepsagirl, and gdyoung59, and so thank you for your ideas and I'm trying to accommodate as much as makes sense. Until the next update!_**


	9. Chapter 9

Rick, Michonne, Spencer, and Rosita piled into a van to go pick up Tynesha and her brother. They had discussed the situation at length and Rick agreed that this may be the turning point in finding out Negan's weaknesses, but he also suspected that it may be a trap. Just in case, Tobin, Father Gabriel, and a few other Alexandrians were following a quarter mile back in another car as back-up, and the group was staying in communication via walkie talkie.

When they arrived at the gas station that Tynesha had mentioned, it looked long abandoned. There were no signs that anyone had been there for a long time. They hid the car behind the station considering Negan's men may already be looking for her, and Michonne and Rick approached the door with guns drawn as Spencer served as a look out and Rosita stood just outside the door to give them extra cover.

Michonne entered first and quietly called for Tynesha. She heard rustling and footsteps coming from the gas station bathroom, and the door slowly opened. Tynesha's brother came out first, holding up a knife and scanning the room quickly. Tynesha was right behind him carrying a sharpened metal stick. When she saw Michonne she put her hand on her brother's back. "It's ok TJ" she said.

Tynesha lowered her stick, but TJ still held up his knife, eyeing Rick suspiciously. "They're here to help us bro" she said, moving towards Rick and Michonne. Rick studied Tynesha quickly and said "Are those Michonne's clothes?"

Michonne looked at Tynesha again and realized that she was wearing the jeans and tank top that Michonne had left in the wives quarters when she was forced to change into lingerie. Since Tynesha was so much shorter than Michonne the jeans were hanging almost to the floor, and the tank top was too big. Tynesha even had Michonne's favorite boots on. Michonne stared at Tynesha questioningly.

"Um… yea. There was nothing else in the closet I could trek through the woods in. And you seemed to love these boots so much I figured you'd want them back. I'll wash everything, I didn't think you'd mind."

Michonne smirked. "You can keep the clothes, I just want my boots back. And my belt."

Tynesha nodded. "Cool beans. Thanks for coming. Now that you're here, we gotta get the fuck outta here. As soon as Negan realizes I'm missing he'll look for me."

Rick nodded and looked at TJ again who had finally lowered his knife. The pair followed Rick and Michonne to the car and everyone piled back in. Rick radioed to the second car that they had picked up the duo and were on their way back.

As Rick drove, Michonne asked Tynesha "How'd you get out of the Sanctuary?"

"I know everyone there. I know who goes where and when. One of the women who is a point earner has a boyfriend who was on gate duty. I did a favor for her once. Snuck some meds to give her when she had a really bad infection. She owed me. I asked her to distract her boyfriend away from the gates for 10 minutes. When he was gone, TJ and I just made a run for it."

"What's a point earner?" Rick asked.

"Usually the newest people at the Sanctuary become one of them. It's people who work for points, and they use the points to buy stuff they need. They're pretty much the lowest people on the totem pole, like the working poor. They have to do the dirtiest jobs and get the least in return. There was no way that woman would ever had earned enough points to buy her own medicine, so I basically saved her life."

"How long will it be until Negan realizes you're missing?" Michonne asked.

"Probably not until dinner. Look, a lot has happened at the Sanctuary since you left, Michonne. Negan has been… I guess sulking is the best word for it. The other wives think it's because of you. I _know_ it is. He goes up in his garden for hours, sometimes he sleeps up there. He hasn't been calling his wives to his bed recently, which was cool with me since I'm beginning to show now. If he was paying attention like he usually does he would've realized something was up with me weeks ago, but he's been distracted. TJ and I, we had to leave now. We probably wouldn't have gotten another shot."

Tynesha turned to TJ who had been quietly listening to the whole conversation. "But TJ, he's the key to everything. He's my inside man. TJ told me Negan killed two of his men in the last week. One because he didn't bow fast enough, another because he stole food from the pantry without paying. TJ said the other men are pissed at Negan, and they were saying that some prick named Rick and some one-eyed kid got away with attacking Negan and nothing happened to them. His men are pissed that he didn't kill _them_ , but he couldn't show mercy on his own people."

Everyone in the car was quiet for a moment.

"What?" Tynesha asked.

"I'm Rick" Rick said, "and the one-eyed kid is my son".

Tynesha looked at TJ who smirked a little. "Oh. Oops. Sorry." She shrugged.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Rick asked, his eyes narrowing as he stared at Tynesha in the rearview mirror.

"You already know you can, or you wouldn't've come to get me." Tynesha said, staring back at Rick. "And I'm pretty sure Michonne trusts me. I've seen how she is, she calls bullshit when she sees it, so if this was bullshit she would've called it. Right?" Tynesha asked Michonne.

"Rick, I trust her" Michonne said to Rick softly.

"Excuse me" Spencer called from the row behind them. "This may be a dumb question, but it seems like this kid doesn't speak. How could he have told you all of this?".

TJ turned around to look at Spencer and rolled his eyes. He turned back to Tynesha and began talking to her in sign language. Tynesha began to laugh. "TJ said to tell you he's mute not stupid, and you're an asshole."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When TJ and Tynesha got back to Alexandria, Rick took them in for an immediate briefing to get as much information from them as possible. Tynesha had explained that she had gotten the ball rolling in the Alexandrian's favor. Tynesha and TJ had made allies with many of the men who were part of Negan's collection team, the teams of people who would go to towns and collect their tributes to Negan. She explained that many of Negan's wives weren't single when they agreed to marry him, and almost all his "marriages" were coerced. Once Negan married the women, they were no longer allowed to talk to their former boyfriends, lovers, or even husbands. Tynesha had passed notes between certain couples or even covered for the other wives sometimes, and by doing so had made many friends. TJ also had allies. Although most people in the Sanctuary didn't know sign language and couldn't have full conversations with him, TJ was good at sneaking and stealing items without being noticed, earning the respect of many people on the collection teams. He even stole certain items as a side job, getting paid in food or favors. Tynesha explained that most people in the Sanctuary had "side jobs" to survive.

Tynesha also dropped bombshell. Before she left, she had told some of the most trustworthy men on the collection team that there was an uprising happening, and asked if they would fight against Negan. When they agreed, she told them that they should be ready to turn against him the next time they arrived at Alexandria, which was in four weeks. She promised that they would be spared if they fought against Negan.

Everyone who was sitting in on the meeting's mouths dropped open in surprise and horror.

"You said what?" Rick growled.

"How… we don't even have enough people, or a plan! Why would you tell them that? We're not ready, and what if Negan finds out?" Michonne shouted.

Tynesha put her hands up. "I know it's scary, but you need to calm the hell down. I got y'all. I told you, I have connections. TJ, hit em' up with the map."

TJ pulled a map from his back pocket and pointed to an area approximately 15 miles from Alexandria. "I have the plan, and you _do_ have enough people. Have you met the people of the Kingdom?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Although TJ and Tynesha both had Michonne's stamp of approval, Rick insisted that they stay in the infirmary, where they could be locked in just in case. He didn't want them loose in Alexandria at night. Tynesha agreed.

Later that night, Rick and Michonne discussed the plan Tynesha had revealed to them.

"We don't even know this community, the Kingdom. How do we know they're on our side? How do we know they can even fight?" Rick asked, shaking his head.

"It's better than what we had before. At least it's some kind of plan."

"Exactly! She's making plans that we didn't even agree to. She's putting us in danger." Rick said, his body tightening in anger. Michonne put her hand on his chest and she instantly felt him relax.

"I know Rick. And we need to find out who these people at the Kingdom are. But we have a whole other town of allies that we knew nothing about. It's a start. And we wouldn't have it if it weren't for her."

"We're missing so many people, not just Glenn and Abraham, but Daryl's not the same, and Morgan and Carol, god knows where they are. We're not strong enough to..."

"Rick. We can find a way. We can do this. I know it." Michonne said, running her hand down his arm. "This is our chance. This is what we've been waiting for. Negan isn't going to be any weaker than he is right now. This will work."

Rick looked into Michonne's eyes and nodded. He trusted her and her instincts. If she was sure about this, he could be too.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

The next morning, Carl was headed past the infirmary when he spotted TJ sitting on the steps sharpening his knife.

"Hey" Carl called, and the boy looked up in surprise. TJ just stared as Carl made his way over.

"I'm Carl" he explained, holding out his hand to shake the boy's hand.

TJ hesitated for a moment and then returned the handshake, nodding his head.

"So you lived with Negan?" Carl asked, joining TJ on the steps. "Is he as much of a dick as he seems?"

TJ smirked and then quickly nodded his head.

 _'_ _Worse'_ TJ signed, and then remembered Carl didn't speak sign language. He looked down, slightly embarrassed.

"So that's how you talk?" Carl asked, curious about the silent boy. TJ nodded.

"Have you always been that way?" Carl asked, intrigued. TJ nodded again.

TJ then pointed to Carl's bandage.

"Oh. I got shot a few months ago. I lost my eye."

TJ's eyes widened in surprise. He had so many questions. _Who did it? What happened to the person? What does the eye look like?_ But he realized he couldn't communicate those questions.

TJ pointed at Carl and then made the ok sign. Carl smiled as he understood what was being asked. _Are you ok?_

"Yea. I'm ok" Carl said smiling. "It's just hard to do things sometimes, because I'm missing an eye."

TJ nodded in understanding.

"Hey, can you teach me?" Carl asked suddenly, "teach me to talk like you?"

TJ smiled broadly and nodded his head and then put up the ok sign. He put both hands out and shrugged his shoulders. _What do you want to know?_

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Around noon, the sound of hooves sent the people at the gates into a panic, quickly aiming their weapons at the 5 people who arrived on horseback. They slowly relaxed when they saw Carol and Morgan among the other three strangers. Rick ran to the gates, completely speechless when he saw the pair. They had been missing for two months and he had to assume that they were either dead or they decided to never come back. Rick wrapped his arms around Carol and hugged her tightly, so relieved to see her. He also hugged Morgan who laughed at the sight of his old friend.

"Where have you been?!" Rick asked/yelled at them.

"I got hurt… uh, shot actually… three times" Carol volunteered.

Rick's mouth dropped open in disbelief. "Yea… it was the Saviors. There's more of them Rick, more than we thought."

"Yea, I know" Rick said, his voice suddenly getting deeper with sadness "a lot has happened here too since you left."

"I found her and I got help taking care of her. These guys," Morgan said, stepping aside so that Rick could see the three other horsemen who had dismounted. "They're from a place called the Kingdom Rick, they helped save Carol. This is their leader, King Ezekiel."

"The Kingdom?" Rick asked in disbelief, but his train of thought was broken as Daryl yelled "Carol!" and ran towards her from down the block. Carol turned to look at him and she smiled as he ran to her, sweeping her off her feet and spinning her around in a giant hug. He buried his face in her neck and he squeezed her so tightly it was painful, but she held on to him, laughing and squeezing him back.

He held on to her longer than she expected and she suddenly realized he was crying. She loosened her grip around him and he slowly had to put her on the ground, but his face was still hidden in her neck. "Daryl?" she asked softly. She put one of her hands on the side of his face, and slowly lifted it up towards her. Tears were tumbling from his eyes and he was avoiding eye contact with her. "Daryl? What happened?" Carol asked.

"I thought… I thought I lost you" Daryl whispered in a voice so broken that tears came to Carol's eyes too.

"No. You didn't lose me" She reassured him, "I'm sorry I left, I just needed to be… away. I'm so sorry. So sorry." she said, using the hand that was on the side of his face to wipe his tears away. Finally, he brought his eyes up to hers, and before he could lose his nerve or talk himself out of it, he pressed his lips to hers gently.

Daryl's kiss totally caught Carol off guard, and she just stood there as he continued to press his lips against hers. After a few seconds of just standing there, she pressed back on his lips, encouraging him to deepen the kiss. They kissed for a few more seconds until Carol pulled away, confused but happy. Daryl was staring at her with an unsure look until she smiled at him and she saw the relief spread across his face.

King Ezekiel watched the whole turn of events curiously, and Morgan and Rick looked on with grins on their faces.

Rick quickly cleared his throat and turned back to King Ezekiel, trying to draw the attention away from Daryl and Carol.

"I'm Rick Grimes" Rick said, extending his hand out towards Ezekiel.

"King Ezekiel of the Kingdom. It's a pleasure to meet you. Morgan and Carol have told me about your valor and skills as a leader. They also told me that you successfully have attacked an outpost of the Saviors?"

Rick nodded. "Yea but it was a mistake. We didn't know how many there were, how big they were. We just kicked the hornet's nest. We lost people, good people, as a result." Rick said, looking downwards.

"Who?" Morgan asked carefully.

"Glenn, and Abraham. Negan killed them, to prove a point."

Morgan looked shocked. "I'm sorry Rick" he said.

Rick nodded his head. "I hear you have lots of warriors. One of Negan's wives escaped from him and told us about your people. She said you may be willing to team up against them, to fight back."

A smile slowly spread across Ezekiel's face. "That's exactly what I came to talk to _you_ about."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Rick, Michonne, Carl, Ezekiel, Tynesha, TJ and Morgan spent the rest of the afternoon talking, and agreed to team up to bring down Negan. They knew that even with the entirety of Alexandria and the Kingdom together, they still didn't have the manpower and knowledge to wage a successful assault on Negan's forces. Tynesha estimated the total number of Saviors at the Sanctuary was around 300, and that didn't include the Saviors who lived in the outposts. The population of Alexandria and the Kingdom together reached just about 175 people. They were still outnumbered.

Then there were the outposts. Tynesha knew the location of the Sanctuary and one other Savior's outpost. Ezekiel knew the location of a different outpost that his people had brought supplies to in the past. TJ had been to another outpost once to drop off supplies, but he had no idea how to get there. They realized that they had to get Hilltop on their side. They needed enough soldiers from all the communities in order to successfully attack all the known outposts at the same time, or the Saviors may be able to warn each other of the attacks via walkie talkie.

"Surely Gregory will agree to help us when he sees that all of us have come together. This is the best chance any of us have had of defeating Negan. Especially since Tynesha has assured us that some of Negan's men are with us as well. It is only in Gregory's best interest to help." Ezekiel said.

"From the way Gregory acted the last time we visited Hilltop, he may need some convincing. He's not the easiest person to get along with, and he's mostly a coward. If there's any risk to him he probably won't cooperate, but we need to try for everyone's sake." Rick added.

"Even if _he_ doesn't want to cooperate, that doesn't mean his people won't. Jesus will be on our side, and I know there's others who will feel the same way he does." Michonne responded.

"What if we just straight up threaten him?" Tynesha proposed. "We could just tell the jerk that if he doesn't help, we'll consider Hilltop is on Negan's side, and fuck them up too. _Or_ , we tell him that Negan already _thinks_ Hilltop is with us, and Negan is coming for him just as much as us. If he's a coward, that'll scare the shit out of him."

Everyone was silent for a moment, considering Tynesha's words. "She does make a good point" Morgan offered. Tynesha smiled in satisfaction as everyone else nodded in agreement.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxx

After dinner, Michonne and Carl went to the infirmary to check on Tynesha and TJ. When they arrived, TJ was reading one of Denise's old medical books, and Tynesha was washing some of her clothes in a bucket of water.

"Hey bit-" Tynesha began to say, but when she spotted Carl behind Michonne she quickly changed the ending of her word "-chonne"

Michonne chuckled, "Bitchonne? That's a new one."

Tynesha smiled at Michonne before turning to Carl. "And you're Carl right? TJ told me he's been teaching you sign language."

Carl nodded, "yea, he's a good teacher. I wanted to stop by and see him since Michonne was coming over here anyway."

TJ signed ' _Hi Carl'_.

"Hi TJ" Carl responded out loud, and then said it again in sign. Carl went to sit next to TJ on the couch, and the two women moved to the next room.

"Michonne, I just wanted to thank you again for coming to get me and TJ. And for trusting us. I know it would've been easy not to. If we survive this, my baby has a chance, and I'm thankful for that at least." Tynesha admitted.

"I know it took a lot of courage to do what you did. And I actually came to thank you for helping, for setting all of this into motion. And also, I wanted to see if there was anything that you needed. I know the first few months of a pregnancy can be rough, and… I just wanted to see if you were ok."

"Awww, don't get all sappy on me bitch" Tynesha laughed. "And I'm good. I'm ok. As long as TJ is, y'know?" Both women nodded and then Tynesha's face got a little more serious.

"Negan, he really got messed up when you left. I think he's in love with you or something, and I think we can use it to our benefit. Whatever our plan is, it has to revolve around you." Tynesha said.

Michonne sighed. "I know."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Look, I can't help you Rich" Gregory said dismissively, slumping more deeply into the office chair behind his desk. "You people picked a fight with Negan, and now you need something from me? I'm not crazy or suicidal. I'll stay where my bread is buttered thank you very much."

"This is the last time I'll say it. My name is _Rick_." Rick warned. "And where is your bread buttered exactly? Every time Negan comes to collect from you, you lose more and more. Eventually you'll have nothing to give him, and you'll have no one to protect you."

"We're doing just fine here. We have a good relationship with Negan and it will continue to be that way as long as we give him what he wants. It's not in my best interest to let troublemakers mess up what I've… I mean _we've_ got going for us." Gregory said as he stood. "Well, it was nice talking to you but I'm done here. Jesus, escort these people to their vehicles so they can go home."

Rick moved to Gregory so quickly, he startled everyone. Rick slammed Gregory back into his chair. "We're not done" Rick growled, bringing his face close to Gregory's. "This is your only opportunity to be free from Negan once and for all and not live like slaves forever. If your people don't help us, and we attack Negan and lose, we will be sure to let it be known that Hilltop supported us the whole time. If your people don't help us, and we win, I will personally destroy you Gregory. See? It _is_ in your best interest to help."

Gregory looked over to Jesus. "Jesus! Are you going to let Rich manhandle me in my own office?"

Before Jesus could respond, Rick punched Gregory in the nose, knocking him out.

"That'll work" Jesus said with a smirk.

"So much for reasoning with him" Ezekiel said with a sigh. "Perhaps we can speak directly to the people, let them make their own decision."

"That may work" Jesus agreed, "But I'd like to suggest something. Let Maggie talk to them."

"Me?" Maggie gasped. She and Sasha had been watching the whole encounter with Gregory alongside Michonne, Rosita, Ezekiel, and Eugene. "Why me?"

Jesus walked over to Maggie. "Since you've been here you've shown yourself as a leader. You and Sasha both. Despite everything you've lost and overcome the two of you have come back from the brink. But Maggie, especially you. You've been training with the archers, even while pregnant, and you've become a role model for the people. I think they would listen to you."

Rick smiled and patted Maggie on the shoulder. "Even Deanna saw it in you. You're a leader Maggie. If anyone can convince them, you can."

Maggie sighed and closed her eyes. When she opened them she had her game face on. "Ok, tell the people we're having a meeting."

Ten minutes later, most of the inhabitants of the Hilltop were outside Barrington house, waiting to see what this impromptu meeting was about. Maggie stood in front of them, flanked by Rick and Ezekiel.

"I know this meetin' wasn't scheduled, but we've just been presented with an opportunity that needs to be addressed immediately. This is an opportunity that effects every single one of you, and so it's only fair that you all hear it, and you all have an opportunity to choose what happens next. Behind me, are the leaders of two other communities that have been terrorized by Negan, just as you have been. They have also had their loved ones beaten to death. They have also been robbed of everything they've worked so hard to earn. They have also been made into slaves and workhorses by Negan. Do you wanna know why they're here? They have offered an alliance. The Hilltop, Alexandria, and the Kingdom, all three of our communities can attack Negan _together_ and win."

There was an audible gasp from the people gathered, and then the murmur of conversations broke out everywhere. Maggie held up her hands.

"I know it's a scary idea. I know you're thinkin' 'we don't stand a chance, we're not strong enough, we don't know how to fight', and I _know_ you're wrong. Negan and his group of thugs are nothin' but bullies. And they've been allowed to get this far because they've separated the communities that they've been bullying. They know that unity is strength. _Alone_ we wouldn't have a chance. But now, with these communities working together, we are stronger than they are. We have numbers, we have strength, and we are determined to keep what's ours."

Maggie paused for emphasis, and not a sound could be heard. Everyone was hanging on to her every word.

"It's time for us to be free. To keep what we've worked for. To not live in fear. The people of Alexandria and the Kingdom are ready to fight. The question is, are the people of the Hilltop?"

As soon as Maggie finished her speech, a dazed Gregory stumbled out the front doors of Hilltop, pausing when he saw the eyes of all his people staring at him.

"Gregory has offered his full support of this alliance, but he has generously asked that the people have an opportunity to vote on what they wanted to do." Maggie announced.

Gregory glared at Maggie but didn't dare contradict what she said. "We'll give you a few hours to think about what you want to do and make your decision, and then we'll vote." Maggie announced. She then nodded her head, dismissing the people to go back to their homes and discuss what they wanted to do.

Three hours later, the people of Hilltop voted to become part of the alliance, as Gregory reluctantly looked on.

"Well, this is a start." Ezekiel said with a nod. "We need to start training the people immediately."

"How much time do we have to plan?" Maggie asked.

"Four weeks" Michonne said with a sigh. "Negan is coming to Alexandria in four weeks."


	10. Chapter 10

_5 days before Negan's visit_

"Ok, I see what's going on, you have to hold your breath before you fire" Rick said, standing behind Michonne with his hands on his hips.

This was the 4th day of sharp shooting classes he and Carol had held for anyone who wanted to sharpen up their skills. Today he was joined by Rosita, Morgan, Spencer, Aaron, Father Gabriel, TJ, Tynesha, Carl, and Michonne. He and Carol were the best shots in Alexandria since Sasha had moved to the Hilltop, so they took it upon themselves to train the others. He had heard that Sasha was also holding classes for the people of Hilltop, and he knew they were in good hands with her.

"Right before you fire, you take a breath and it throws off your aim, that's why you keep missing" Rick instructed Michonne. Michonne was frustrated. She hated it when there was something she couldn't get right, and sharp shooting just wasn't her thing. She especially hated it that Rick was there to witness the one thing she wasn't good at.

"So, that's it? Just hold my breath?" she asked incredulously.

"Try it. I bet it'll work" Rick declared confidently.

"Really?" Michonne asked slyly, wiggling her behind seductively but just enough that no one but Rick would notice. "What do you bet?"

Rick leaned in closer to her, pretending to be helping her look through her scope, but he pressed himself up against her ass, sneaking in a few squeezes. "Whatever you want baby" he whispered in her ear.

"I'm holding a loaded weapon here" she teased, playfully bumping Rick away from her.

"So am I" Rick said in his southern drawl that suddenly made her uncomfortably hot. Michonne smiled but didn't turn around to look at Rick. She hefted the gun up higher and her smile dropped as she focused in the scope. She spotted her target, the base of a large tree, and held her breath before pulling the trigger. She heard a satisfying pop as a bullet struck the tree. Her smile returned as she realized she had finally hit her target. Rick proudly squeezed her shoulder and moved in closer to squeeze another lower body part as Carl walked up to them, causing Rick to tame his wandering hand.

"Hey dad, can I try?" he asked.

Rick looked at Michonne quickly as if asking her if he should let Carl practice shooting. The boy had come a long way since his injury, but his depth perception was lacking. Although he still carried a hand gun and could shoot someone at close range, sharp shooting was a whole other story. He could barely hit the target when playing darts.

"You sure you're up for it?" Rick asked hesitantly.

"Yea" Carl said confidently. "I want to try"

Rick glanced at Michonne again and she gave him a look that said ' _let him try_ '

Rick handed Carl the gun and moved the scope over to the left side to accommodate that Carl didn't have a right eye.

"Just take your time Carl, line the crosshairs up with your target, and hold your breath right before you fire."

Carl nodded as he concentrated. He then pulled the trigger and the shot missed.

"Ok, just try again" Rick said. "Widen your stance a little, check your scope, and go again."

Carl fired again and missed. He immediately prepared for another shot, aimed, fired, and missed again. And again, and again.

"Maybe shifting your aim to the right a little will help" Rick suggested. "Your shots are going to the left, you have to adjust for your eye…"

"No" Carl said, dropping the gun from his shoulder and shoving it at Rick, "Just forget it". He turned and stalked off.

Michonne, sensing the boy's frustration, turned to Rick. "I'll go get him" she explained, before walking off after Carl. She found him sitting on a rock by himself.

"You wanna talk about it?" she asked.

Carl surprised her by nodding his head and looking at the leaves on the ground. Michonne took a seat next to him on the rock and waited for him to speak. He took a deep breath and then looked up at her.

"Everything is hard now. Everything! Not just the shooting. I used to be a good shot, but now I'm useless with a gun. And I have a huge blind spot now, I bump into things all the time, and trip over things. It sucks. I can't believe my whole life is gonna be like this now. I just feel useless. I don't want to let my dad down. Or you."

Michonne smiled and reached over to take Carl's hand in hers, gently rubbing it. "Carl, you've been through more than anyone your age should ever have to go through. Give yourself a break. I understand you're frustrated, and I know I can never truly know how you're feeling, and everything you're going through, but you are the toughest boy I know. So sharp shooting isn't your thing right now, it's ok, I kinda suck at it too. There's other things you can do to help us."

"Like what?" Carl asked.

"Well… I guess that's up to you to figure out. But I know you will. I have faith in you Carl and so does your dad."

Carl nodded as the two of them sat quietly for a few minutes. Carl suddenly broke the silence.

"TJ can talk without speaking. What if… what if TJ and I help send messages during the attack. I mean, if we use walkie talkies, Negan's men might be able to overhear what we're saying to each other right? They might pick up on our frequency. But they can't overhear sign language. If TJ and I work together to teach other people, maybe we can get a bunch of people who can help us communicate without Negan knowing what's going on!"

Michonne looked at Carl in wonder. "That's a great idea Carl. If you and TJ teach enough people, we can send messages right under Negan's nose."

Carl smiled at Michonne's validation. "Ok, I'll go see if TJ wants to do it"

Michonne reached over and ruffled Carl's long, messy hair "What a smart boy I have" she said, beaming.

Carl yanked his head away with a grin on his face "Ughhh, mom!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 _The day before Negan's visit_

The members of all three communities had been training for weeks and planning for the attack on Negan when he came to Alexandria, the attack on the Sanctuary, and the attacks on the known Saviors outposts which would all be taken down simultaneously. The communities also had to keep going on runs for supplies so that the Saviors wouldn't be tipped off to any unusual activity at the various communities. The Kingdom and the Hilltop supplied non-firearm weapons to everyone, and the Alexandrians had to be trained on how to use bows, spears, and swords as they usually used guns. Due to TJ's knowledge of how Negan's Collection Teams operated, they were aware that Negan always had back-up in case a town they were collecting from fought back. To take care of the back-up soldiers, a mixed team on horseback, from the Kingdom and Hilltop, were waiting to ambush the back-up when bullets started flying in Alexandria.

Rick had demanded that all children under 14 be taken from Alexandria and moved to a relocation area a few miles away. The relocation area was a rendezvous point in case Alexandria fell and was destroyed. Everyone knew to meet there, get the children, and they'd figure the rest out on the run. The children were being guarded by Alexandrians who were too old or unable to fight in the battle, but they had been trained personally by Rick on how to shoot.

Before Judith left, Rick, Carl and Michonne took turns holding and kissing her, each of them unsure if they'd ever see the happy little baby again.

Later that afternoon, Michonne who was on gate duty was shocked when she saw Maggie and Sasha arriving in a car. She opened the gates to let them in and threw her arms around the two women as soon as they hopped out.

"What are you guys doing here?" Michonne asked incredulously. "Especially you" she said, looking pointedly at Maggie.

"We came to help" Sasha said. "With Negan's numbers, you need all the help you can get."

"What about Hilltop? Don't _they_ need you?" Michonne questioned.

"We have a bone to pick with Negan, and we're gonna help take him down. Sasha is the best sniper either of our communities have, and I won't rest until I see that motherfucker dead." Maggie said stubbornly.

"Maggie, what about the baby?" Michonne asked, looking down at Maggie's rapidly growing baby bump.

"This baby and I will both rest well knowing I helped kill its father's murderer. We're not leaving Michonne, so just tell us where we're needed."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was the night before Negan was supposed to come to Alexandria for his supply pick-up. Rick and Michonne had been going over the plan and finalizing all the possible scenarios with Tynesha, Ezekiel, and Jesus, and a few of the other leaders of the various groups that would be attacking the next day. They had sat together discussing all possibilities of what could happen for hours, and everyone was exhausted.

"Let's all go get some rest" Rick reasoned. "We've planned this out as well as we can. We've gone over every scenario we could think of. There's nothing more we can do but wait until tomorrow. Take tonight to do whatever it is you need to do, and remember what it is you're fighting for."

The others nodded and gave handshakes and hugs as they went off to their various rendezvous points and camps. Ezekiel was leading the attack on one of the outposts, and Jesus was part of the attack on the Sanctuary, so the two of them left to travel to the camps they made that was closer to their targets. It was hoped that once those targets had been subdued, they'd be able to find information about where the other unknown outposts were. Most of the plan was wait and see since Negan was so unpredictable, even more so lately than usual. Rick wasn't even sure if Negan would show up tomorrow at all. But they had to have faith that they could handle whatever was thrown at them. As he glanced at Michonne and she glanced back at him, he knew that no matter what happened, at least she was still with him.

Rick had gone to check a few last minute things after the meeting, and Michonne had headed back home to check on Carl. By the time Rick made it back home, Carl had already gone to bed and the downstairs was quiet. Rick locked the doors and made his way upstairs to his bedroom. When he opened the door he found Michonne fully dressed and laid across the bed the short way, fast asleep. She laid on her back with her arms at 90 degree angles from her body, as if she'd sat on the bed for a moment and passed out in exhaustion. He chuckled to himself as he watched her chest move up and down, the tiniest hint of a snore coming through her mouth.

Rick sat next to her for a few moments, just taking in how beautiful she looked when she was sleeping.

 _I would do anything for this woman. If it comes down to it tomorrow, I would die for her_ Rick thought, as he studied every line and crease on her beautiful face. He bent down and removed his shoes before reaching over and taking off her shoes as well. She didn't stir as he got another blanket and laid it over both of them before he curled up beside her on the bed, laying the short way as well.

"I love you. Good night." He whispered before wrapping his arms around her and burying his head into her shoulder.

It was Michonne's erratic breathing that stirred Rick from his sleep. His arms were draped around her waist and her sudden change in breathing was disturbing enough for his brain to realize something was wrong. His eyes slowly opened and he peered at Michonne in the darkness. She had kicked off the blanket that had been covering her and she was breathing so fast she was almost panting, but her eyes were still closed. Rick knew immediately she was having a nightmare.

"Michonne" he whispered in her ear, propping himself up on an elbow. She responded with a whimper that almost broke his heart, it sounded like someone was hurting her.

"Michonne!" he said a little louder, "Wake up honey". He touched her shoulder and gently shook her, but to his dismay it seemed like the nightmare got worse.

"No!" she mumbled. "Rick! No! No!"

Rick shook her a little harder. "Michonne, you're having a bad dream. Wake up honey. C'mon" Rick said, as he tried to sit her up.

Michonne then let out a blood curdling scream and her eyes popped open. When she saw Rick she leaped out of bed so fast she almost fell on the floor. Rick, stunned, just stared at Michonne as she panted and looked around the bedroom wildly.

"It was a bad dream Michonne" Rick said softly.

Michonne, realizing she was safe and in her bedroom let out a series of slow breaths. Soon her breaths turned to sobs as she began to cry. Rick hopped out of bed and wrapped his arms around her as she buried her face into his neck. He wanted to ask her what the nightmare was about, but he knew she would tell him if and when she was ready, so he held her for a while until she calmed down and stopped crying.

"You ok?" he asked softly.

She nodded into his neck and let go of him. "Yea… let's, let's go back to bed" she suggested.

Without a word he held her hand, leading her back to the bed. She took off her clothes that she'd fallen asleep wearing, and crawled under the covers. He slid in next to her, and she turned so that she was laying against him, her head resting on his chest and her leg thrown between his.

"Sorry for waking you up" she mumbled.

"You kidding? I'm glad you weren't having a heart attack. You scared me to death."

"I'm sorry" she said again.

"It was about me, wasn't it?" he asked.

Michonne didn't respond and he knew the nightmare was about him.

"You were… you were a walker. And I was all alone. Everyone was dead. The kids…" Michonne let out another whimper as tears began to fall from her eyes again. "I was all alone so I… I let you… I let you bite me. I didn't want to live anymore. It's the second time I've had this dream."

Rick was quiet for a while as he took in what Michonne had said. He knew she didn't necessarily need him to respond to what she said, but he had to reassure her.

"You're not losing me Michonne. Not today. You're not losing everyone. We are gonna do this, and the plan will work. You know how I know I'll be ok?" Rick asked.

Michonne moved her head up to look into his eyes. "How?" she whispered.

"Because you'll be ok too."

Michonne let out a snort at Rick's words. "Stop stealing my lines" she said, playfully poking Rick's chest with her chin.

"C'mon. Let's go back to sleep, we still have a few hours until we need to get up."

"And _you_ want to sleep?" Michonne asked incredulously.

"Yea. I want to be bright and wide eyed when Negan comes knocking" Rick said with a smirk. "And, I'm _so_ confident we're gonna win, I already have plans of what I'm gonna do to you tonight. We're gonna have a victory celebration, just you and me." Rick said, pulling Michonne even closer to him. His voice made her body purr with anticipation, but Rick was right. They needed to get as much sleep as possible to be alert later on.

"We'd better survive, or my ghost will kick your ghost's ass for making me miss goodbye sex" Michonne threatened.

"Yes ma'am" Rick muttered into her hair, before both of them closed their eyes again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Negan woke up with a start. He looked around confused about why he wasn't in his bed and realized he'd fallen asleep in the lounge chair in his rooftop garden. Again. He didn't plan to sleep up there, but he just didn't want to go back to his room. Whenever he laid in his large king sized bed all he could think of was Michonne. Michonne's ass, Michonne's eyes, Michonne's skin, Michonne's lips. It was like she was haunting him.

After Michonne left he tried bringing his wives to bed as a distraction from her but it didn't work. They weren't her. Eventually he just stopped calling his wives to bed all together. He knew they were pissed, but he didn't care. There was only one woman he wanted.

His mood had changed as well. He was distracted, and even more short tempered than usual. Part of his short tempered attitude was because one of his wives had disappeared. His favorite wife, actually. He had gone searching for her after she left with her brother, but he didn't find her and he was pissed. He knew his people were whispering behind his back, but as long as they stayed in their place he could ignore it.

Despite his nasty mood, his spirits were somewhat lifted. He was doing a collection from Alexandria today and he'd finally get to see Michonne. He _needed_ to see her. He was gonna make her an offer she couldn't refuse.

 _And she'd better not refuse, or Rick will fucking pay._

He stretched, hearing his back crack from the uncomfortable position he had been laying in. Not bothering to wash or change his clothes, He walked back inside and found one of his commanders.

"Get the team, we're going to Alexandria"

An hour and a half later, Negan pulled up to Alexandria's gates. As soon as the driver of his SUV stopped, Negan hopped out and lazily swung Lucille across his shoulder. As he approached the gates, they slid open just like before, and a weary looking Rick greeted him. Negan smiled at Rick's glare.

"Knock knock Rick! You missed me?"

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Rick didn't say anything but opened the gates with his head down and Negan walked in. Rick noticed Negan seemed slightly disheveled. His hair had taken on a greasy look and was starting to grow long. His beard hadn't been trimmed and was longer than it previously had been, and Negan had telltale bags under his eyes that signaled that he hadn't been sleeping well. He looked around curiously and then turned back to Rick.

"Forget your manners?" Negan asked.

Rick tilted his head to the right in annoyance and then slowly got to both knees. Negan looked Rick up and down for a second and something seemed off about him. Rick was a little too submissive today.

 _Maybe he finally learned his lesson_ Negan thought. He decided to poke the bear.

"I asked you if you missed me" Negan said, getting in Rick's face.

"No sir" Rick replied, his eyes moving upwards to stare into Negan's.

 _Oh there it is, that's the Rick I know_ , Negan thought with satisfaction. He had come looking to pick a fight, and it was no fun if Rick didn't give him one. A smile slid across Negan's face.

"Awww that's a fucking shame, 'cuz I missed _you_. Well actually that's not true. I really missed Michonne." Negan said, circling around Rick who was still kneeling. "I spent the last few weeks fantasizing about her in that bra and panty set I picked out. Her ass is a fucking masterpiece. I could just watch her walk for hours…"

As Negan talked, Rick could feel his anger begin to bubble up in his chest. He knew his face was turning red from the rage that he was feeling inside, but he wouldn't ruin this plan because he was angry. He wouldn't throw away everything that everyone had been working towards just because he wanted to kill Negan. Rick sucked it up and stared as Negan continued to talk.

"… you could just eat off it. Ain't that right Rick?" Negan finished.

"Yes sir" Rick mumbled.

"Where _is_ my girl Michonne?" Negan asked.

"She's busy" Rick spat.

"Uh… busy?" Negan asked, "Doing fucking what?"

"Getting your supplies together" Rick said, "…sir"

"Well let's go find her then. I have to ask her something. I'm hoping she'll say yes… for your sake." Negan said as he winked. "Get the fuck up Rick, let's go for a walk."

Rick slowly rose to his feet and Negan wrapped his arm around Rick's shoulder. Rick angrily shook off Negan's arm as he led him to the townhouse that Michonne was in.

"Wo-ho-ho Rick! I thought we were cool!" Negan taunted as he signaled to his men to start collecting the items that were already waiting outside in boxes.

Rick ignored Negan as he walked ahead of him, deeper into the town. Out of the corner of his eye, Rick spotted Carl on top of a nearby roof. Carl held up ten fingers and then quickly ducked back down into his hiding spot. Ten minutes until back-up is here.

Rick led Negan to the front of one of the town houses. A few Alexandrians were carrying boxes out of the house and bringing it to the center of town for the Saviors to collect.

"Go get her" Negan demanded of Rick, as Negan waited outside. Rick quickly jogged up the stairs and entered the house where Michonne was waiting.

"We have ten minutes until our back-up is here" Rick whispered, "We'll have to stall a bit."

Michonne nodded and leaned in to kiss Rick quickly on the lips. Her kiss said everything she was thinking, _we got this._ She led the way out of the house as Rick followed behind her.

"Michonne! Honey pie! How the fuck have you been?" Negan asked, opening his arms wide as if she'd actually come over to give him a hug.

Michonne stood in front of him but didn't answer, staring him down. Rick stood next to her with the same expression.

"Not even a fucking hug Michonne? It's like that now?" Negan asked in mock shock.

"We're giving you what you came for. Why do you need to talk to me?" she asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Well, there's something else I came for, something I wanted to ask you. And I wanted Ricky here when I did. You might not like it, but I'm hoping you'll learn to."

Michonne eyed Negan with hatred. She had one guess what he wanted to ask her, and it wasn't anything good.

"I want you to come back with me, and stay this time. I know what you said before, but here's the thing…" Negan said pulling his gun and pointing it at Rick, "if you don't, I'll put a bullet through Rick's head."

Michonne's heart dropped. She knew Negan would pull some stunt like this. Tynesha had warned them that he was unstable and obsessed with her, but seeing him with a gun to Rick's head was a whole different story. Rick's eyes narrowed at the gun pointed in his face, but he didn't move.

"I can't go back without you" Negan enunciated, staring Michonne in the eyes, "I won't."

Michonne's eyes flicked from Rick's to Negan's. Rick's fingers were slowly inching towards his gun that was strapped to his hip. She had to diffuse the situation and quickly. They still had a few minutes before back-up arrived, and they had to stall.

"Ok… ok… just put the gun down" Michonne said, trying to coax Negan. "I'll go with you. Just let him go."

Negan's eyes grew wild and unstable. "I would, but y'know what? I've just fucking changed my mind. I think he needs to die anyway. You told me before I'll never be Rick, right? I'll never be him. I'll never live up to your fucking perfect motherfucker Rick. So I should just kill him, so you have no one to compare me to. As long as Rick is alive you'll never settle for me." Negan clicked the safety off the gun he was pointing at Rick.

Michonne knew this was getting out of control. There was no way she was going to wait for back-up, they had to act now. Michonne caught Rick's eyes and they exchanged a glance. _Do it now._

Michonne, still staring at Negan, quickly signed ' _now'_ with her hands. Sasha, who was positioned on the roof of one of the nearby houses, waiting for the signal from Michonne, pulled the trigger of her sniper rifle and a gun shot rang out across the town, hitting Negan in the arm that was pointing the gun at Rick. His arm flew upwards and he let out a scream of pain and confusion. Simultaneously, an arrow fired by Maggie who had been hiding on a roof behind them with Tynesha, struck him in the back.

Negan's men who were standing behind him, turned in shock, looking for the source of the gunfire. Carl and TJ, who were on top of the buildings signaled _'_ _open fire'_ and suddenly the rooftops were alight with gunfire, arrows, and spears being thrown down at the unsuspecting Saviors. Many of Negan's men who were unfortunate enough to be standing by nearby buildings were hit with scalding water that was thrown from open windows.

Rick, seeing his chance to finally get Negan, ran towards him while simultaneously pulling his weapon from his holster. Before Rick had the chance to get his gun out, Michonne saw Negan aim his gun with his opposite uninjured hand. She screamed "No Rick!" but it was too late. An earsplitting gunshot erupted from Negan's gun, and a bullet hit Rick in the leg. Rick stumbled backwards and fell to the floor in shock, clutching his leg. As Michonne ran to Rick, Negan used the opportunity to stumble to his feet.

Maggie continued aiming arrows at Negan, but he was now a moving target as he stumbled away with the first arrow she'd shot still in his back. Sasha was also concentrating on hitting Negan, but her focus was pulled away when Carol who was on top of the roof with her pointed to Alexandria's gates.

"Sasha! Take out the cars!" Carol yelled. Sasha didn't want to lose Negan in her sights for a moment, but the way Carol was yelling, she knew it was important. She cursed silently and turned towards where Carol was pointing. A second convoy of trucks had shown up. One of Negan's back-up groups.

Sasha took aim and opened fire on the convoy, flattening the tires and trying to hit as many people as she could. People leaped out the way as a wall of bullets descended on them.

Carl, who was directing the war effort from the rooftops saw Negan shoot his father. A rage like nothing he'd ever felt before took over him. Without another word, Carl left his post and raced to the door that led from the roof.

Michonne quickly ran to Rick, pulling him towards cover. His leg was bleeding profusely and the wound looked like a mangled mass of blood and tissue. She dragged him behind a tree and began to remove her belt to wrap around his leg.

"No! Get Negan!" Rick hissed.

"If I leave you you'll bleed to death!" Michonne snapped at him.

"The whole point of this is to kill him" Rick pleaded. "Don't let him get away."

"He'll die" Michonne said, ignoring Rick. "I'll make sure of it. But you won't."

Michonne wrapped her belt firmly around Rick's leg and was tying the buckle to hold the makeshift bandage in place when one of Negan's soldiers spotted them hiding behind the tree. The man aimed his gun and was seconds away from firing when he dropped to the ground, dead. Another one of Negan's soldiers had shot him.

"I'm friends with Tynesha." the man yelled, "You're Michonne right? I got you."

The man gave Michonne cover as she pulled Rick into the townhouse. As soon as she got Rick up the stairs, the man ran off to continue the fight.

Sasha and Carol were on the roof taking out as many of Negan's soldiers as they could, when they heard a loud voice coming from the floor below them. "Take out the snipers".

Sasha looked to Carol. They had locked the roof door, but someone obviously knew they were up there. Sasha saw Maggie and Tynesha who were on an adjacent roof, Maggie firing arrows at the people below, and Tynesha putting her sharp shooting training to good use.

Sasha waved her hands to get their attention. Tynesha looked up and Sasha signed _help!_ And pointed to the men who were entering the house below her. Tynesha nodded, and ran to the opposite side of the roof where TJ was communicating messages. She signed something to him and then ran back to where Sasha was. _Coming!_ She responded.

"Help is coming" Sasha said to Carol.

"Not in time" Carol responded, turning to the roof door as they heard someone take a few kicks at it.

"Sasha, finish taking out the tires on all the cars. None of those soldiers can get away from here and warn the other Saviors. I'll handle the door." Carol said.

"Ok" Sasha responded. She knew Carol was right. The plan could be destroyed if Negan's men managed to escape and tip off the other Saviors. The teams who were attacking the outposts needed the element of surprise.

Sasha ignored the kicking at the door as she targeted in on the vehicles, aiming for the engines and tires to disable them. Suddenly an earsplitting crack announced that the roof door had been kicked open. Carol unleashed a hail of bullets into the open doorway causing the soldiers to dive for cover. Sasha had just finished destroying the tires on the last truck when bullets began to bounce off the wall next to her. She abandoned her sniper rifle and crawled behind some bricks to get out of the way.

"Get those bitches!" A man screamed. Sasha pulled a handgun and stayed silent as she heard footsteps approaching her. Before they got closer she opened fire blindly in the direction of the footsteps and heard someone scream. More bullets caused her to duck down again and she realized her gun was now empty. She sighed. If this was how she was to die, she could accept that. She did everything she could to help her friends destroy Negan. Now she could go be with her brother, and Bob, and Abraham, and everyone else she had loved and lost. But she would go down fighting.

Carol knew she only had a few bullets left in her gun and she was trying to conserve them. She watched Negan's soldiers carefully make their way on to the roof. She needed to wait and see how many there were. She could see six. She figured she had about three bullets left. She'd have to make this work. She let them all make their way out into the open and silently took aim from behind a wall. _Bam!_ She took out the last man to walk through the door, but she gave away her position. Bullets surrounded her on all sides as the remaining five Saviors turned towards her. Carol, realizing she'd probably be dead soon, fired another bullet in the direction of the gunfire, and was shocked to hear a scream. She'd hit someone else. _Four to go._

Sasha could see the legs of one of Negan's men as he inadvertently walked past where she was crouching. Sasha silently pulled her knife and glanced to see if anyone else was right behind him. When she didn't see anyone she leaped from her spot and slammed her knife into the man's neck. He screamed in pain and his buddies opened fire on her, hitting her in the left shoulder. Sasha screamed as the pain radiated from her shoulder. Carol used the distraction to take a shot with her last bullet, and hit another soldier in the head. There were two men left on the roof. Sasha let go of her injured shoulder and threw herself on to one of the men as Carol took another.

 _Two on two, those are better odds._

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Michonne dragged Rick into one of the houses. Rick was pissed off beyond belief that he now couldn't help take the Saviors down. He hated being helpless, especially now.

"Put me by the window" Rick demanded, even as he groaned in pain from his damaged leg. Michonne obliged, setting him down on a chair by an open window. "Leave me a rifle" Rick ordered. Michonne passed him a rifle that had been hidden in the house. "Now go get him!" Rick said, turning to Michonne.

Michonne hesitated. She knew she had to leave Rick, but she didn't want to. _He'll be ok_ she thought to herself. She leaned in to him and planted a last kiss on his lips before she turned and ran out the door to find Negan.

Rick hefted the rifle up to his shoulder and rested its muzzle on the window sill. He may not be able to walk, but he'd take out any Saviors that ran by.

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TJ stood at his spot on the roof, sending messages to the groups of snipers who were on the rooftops of Alexandria. There were five other people strategically placed on the roofs so that they could all see each other and give updates on where the Saviors were congregated, and who needed help, through sign language. He noticed that Carl had left his post, making it harder for messages to be sent now, but he figured it was for a good reason. He saw Tynesha sign that Station 3, Carol and Sasha's sniper station, needed back-up. TJ passed the message on, and Daryl, who was also on a roof shooting his crossbow, saw it.

 _Station 3? Carol is up there!_

He stopped what he was doing and turned to run towards the house that the two women were in, hoping he wasn't too late.

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Carl ran in the direction that he saw Negan limp off in. He knew Negan had been hit at least twice and was now injured, but the man was as resourceful as ever and managed to disappear from the eyes of the many snipers who were watching from the roofs of Alexandria. Carl followed the length of the gates until he spotted Negan limping in the direction of Alexandria's open front gates.

Negan was pulling on the door handle of one of the disabled cars, trying to get in the driver's seat, but he looked down and realized the tires had been shot out. He had just turned to try another car when Carl caught up with him and body slammed him into the concrete.

"Shit! What the-" Negan started, but his sentence was cut off by Carl's fists as he straddled Negan and relentlessly pummeled Negan's face. Negan lifted his good arm to defend himself, but Carl easily held Negan's arm down with his left hand as he punched with his right. Carl was in a fit of rage and wouldn't have stopped if Michonne hadn't come up behind him and pulled Carl off.

"No! I'm gonna kill him!" Carl screamed in a rage, fighting Michonne. He snatched his arms out of her hands and shoved her backwards so hard she almost fell. The shock of almost pushing her down, and the look of disbelief on Michonne's face sobered Carl up quickly.

His mouth opened in surprise and his eye widened in horror. "I'm… s-sorry Michonne" Carl stuttered.

Michonne ignored Carl's apology as she stalked over to Negan and yanked him up by the collar of his shirt. "Help me get him back in Alexandria" she ordered Carl, "there are other people who deserve more revenge than you."

Just then, a convoy of horses rumbled down the street leading up to Alexandria. It was their back-up from the Kingdom and Hilltop. They had just taken out the rest of Negan's back-up soldiers and were returning to help in the battle. Michonne moved out the way as the horsemen and women rode into Alexandria, targeting the dozens of Saviors who were still inside.

Michonne and Carl each grabbed one of Negan's arms and dragged him back into Alexandria. Rosita, spotting them, escorted them with her weapon trained on Negan at all times. The sound of gunfire and screams echoed throughout Alexandria as the fight continued.

"Michonne, it doesn't have to be like this…" Negan mumbled as blood dripped from his split lip.

"Shut up!" Michonne hissed, tightening her hold on his arm. Suddenly, a shower of bullets began bouncing off the pavement near Michonne, Carl, Rosita, and Negan. Michonne shoved Carl behind a truck as Rosita opened fire on three Saviors that were using a building as cover. Michonne dragged Negan behind the truck as well, as Rosita covered them.

"Let Negan go!" someone yelled.

Rosita answered by spraying them with bullets.

"You'll never win" Negan spat out. "I have way too many fucking people".

"I said shut up" Michonne growled.

"Rick's a fucking loser!" Negan screamed, "you don't know what a real fucking man is…"

Michonne swiftly kicked Negan in the balls, causing him to curl up into a ball on the floor. Carl was more than happy to press his knee to Negan's throat, keeping him on the ground and quiet.

"Let him go and we won't kill you!" someone yelled from behind the building, "that's the only way you make it out from behind that truck alive!". Rosita moved to continue firing at the Saviors who were yelling at them, but Michonne put a hand on her shoulder to keep her down. "You're just wasting bullets, you won't hit them. We need a distraction."

Suddenly, the Saviors who were hiding behind the wall screamed in pain. Michonne peeked out from behind the truck quickly enough to catch a stream of scalding hot water being poured out of one of the windows directly on to the Saviors below.

"Run!" Enid yelled as she ducked back inside the house.

Michonne yanked Negan up from the ground and she, Carl, and Rosita took off back towards the townhouse she had left Rick in.

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Daryl raced toward station 3, the roof where Carol and Sasha had signaled for help. He could hear people shooting at him, but he didn't care, making sure to run in a zigzag to avoid getting shot. When he was a block away from the house he heard gunfire coming from the roof, and then to his horror, a body fell backwards off the roof, slamming into the ground below. Daryl's breathing stopped and his body went cold.

 _It can't be Carol. It ain't her. It ain't her._

Daryl carefully jogged over to the fallen body, afraid to look but needing to. As he cautiously approached he saw short brown hair and knew it wasn't Carol or Sasha. He turned and dashed into the house, sprinting up the stairs with his crossbow at the ready. As he burst onto the roof he saw multiple bodies scattered everywhere. He jogged over to the sniper rifle that was still propped up on the side of the building when he spotted Sasha and Carol crouched down behind a wall. Both injured, but alive, with Sasha bleeding from a gunshot wound to the arm.

"Did y'all throw that guy off the roof?" Daryl asked as he approached the women in awe.

Carol snickered as she helped Sasha to her feet. "He had it coming".

Daryl reached for Carol and pressed his lips against hers, this time both of them kissing back equally.

"Um… I'm shot and there are Saviors running around. Maybe this isn't the time?" Sasha groaned.

"You're right, let's get you to the infirmary" Carol said, limping slightly from her fight as she and Daryl helped Sasha off the roof.

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By the time Carl, Michonne, and Rosita made it back to the house where they had left Rick, most of the Saviors had been killed by either the Alexandrians, the back-up forces from the Hilltop and the Kingdom, or the Saviors that had switched sides and taken out their own people.

Negan's bullet wound in his arm and the arrow still sticking out from his back were bleeding profusely as he was dragged through the streets. When they approached the townhouse there was a loud click and then a gunshot that startled Michonne and Carl enough for them to drop Negan's arms. Negan screamed in agony and blood began to pour from one of his legs. Michonne looked up at the house and saw Rick in the window, slowly putting down the shot gun she'd given him. The look in Rick's eye was one of pure hate as he stared at Negan as he writhed in pain on the ground.

Soon, more Alexandrian's emerged from their houses, or stations on the roof where they were defending their homes. The allies from the Kingdom and Hilltop came over to see what the commotion was about, and the new allies who were former Saviors, ten in all, also came to watch Negan squirm on the ground in pain. Many people were shot or injured, but they still came over to watch Negan.

"Shit!" Negan moaned as he laid flat on his back on the ground. "So that's it, huh?" he spat as he looked at the crowd surrounding him, "You're just gonna fucking kill me? Go ahead you pussies. Go ahead, Rick!" Negan yelled at the window Rick was still sitting by. "Kill me in front of your boy! Show him how a real man handles his business!"

Just then, Daryl and Carol joined the group, holding on to Sasha who was nursing her gunshot wound to the arm. As soon as Daryl saw Negan, he let go of Sasha and ran at him, pulling out his knife. He kicked Negan in the face and promptly hacked off one of his fingers causing Negan to howl in agony. "Fucking son of a bitch" Daryl spat.

Sasha looked over at Rosita who still had her gun leveled at Negan and a murderous look on her face. They glanced at each other and they came to an understanding. _Do it for us both._

Rosita nodded in Sasha's direction and lowered her gun. Sasha approached Negan who was now rolling in agony from his two gun shots, his arrow to the back, and his missing finger, and calmly took out her knife. She stared into his eyes and whispered "this is for Abraham", and she swiftly slit his neck. Negan's blood began pouring from his neck but no one said a word as he slowly began to bleed out. Sasha walked back over to Carol who put an arm around her as they watched Negan's last moments.

Maggie was the last to arrive to the gathering. She pushed her way through the group and saw that Negan was dying, but she had to finish him, for Glenn. She took her bow off her back and positioned an arrow into the notch. She walked up to Negan's face and stood over him. His eyes were open and he was weakly clutching his throat but was on the verge of passing out. "You got off too easy, I hope you go to hell and get what you really deserve" she said, before shooting an arrow through his forehead. Negan fell on the ground, limp and still, as blood continued to trickle from his neck. The crowd that was gathered looked on silently for a few moments, as if unsure how to react.

Finally, Michonne took charge. "Get the gates closed and make sure there are enough guards to cover the entire perimeter. Team from the Kingdom, go back out and check outside the gates to make sure we took care of every single one of the Saviors and the Savior's back-up team. We don't want any surprises. Take the injured to the infirmary, and check all the roofs, houses, and streets for walkers. Eugene, get on the radio and check in with the other teams at the Sanctuary and the outposts. Tell them Negan is dead, and check the status of their missions."

Once Michonne gave the orders, everyone jumped into action, moving off in different directions to do what she asked. A few people purposely stepped on, kicked, or spat on Negan's body, but they left him in the street as they went about their business.

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There were heavy casualties on both sides. All the Saviors that had come into Alexandria had been killed, except for those who had switched sides and fought against their own group. The Alexandrians had taken heavy losses as well. Spencer, Tobin, and Eugene were among the many people who hadn't survived the siege. The infirmary was full of patients, but without a real doctor there was only so much that could be done. Rosita and Tara tried their best to care for the many gunshot wounds that people had received, Rick and Sasha included.

Michonne stood by as Rosita tried to stich up the wound in Rick's leg without anesthesia or much else besides a needle and thread. Rick was staring straight ahead, the only clue that he was in pain was an occasional inhalation when Rosita pulled on the string a little too hard. When he sucked in his breath, Michonne whispered "big baby", causing him to smile. When she was done, Rick thanked Rosita and she rushed off to stitch up someone else's wound.

"So, we made it" Michonne said softly, sitting on the side of the exam bed Rick was resting on.

"We did" he confirmed, letting out a breath, "I told you so". Michonne reached for one of his hands, and held it gently between both of hers.

"There might be more. There probably is more. We still haven't heard back from the other groups. We don't know if they succeeded…"

Rick cut Michonne off. "We made it. We're alive, Negan is dead. We'll just go from there. Whatever we need to do to end this, we'll do it. You were afraid to lose everyone, but you haven't. We don't die. Not now. Not like this."

Michonne nodded.

"Don't think I forgot what I said this morning" Rick teased, his hand snaking over to Michonne's thigh. "We're gonna have a victory celebration tonight if it kills me."

"Uh, did you forget you're shot?" Michonne asked incredulously, "A victory celebration very well might kill you."

"Then I'll die a happy man" Rick laughed, his hand snaking higher up Michonne's leg.

"Why Richard Grimes, I do declare you are _thee_ horniest dog I ever have met in my life" Michonne said, pressing her hand to her chest in pretend shock and putting on her best southern belle accent.

Rick chuckled and leaned in to kiss her just as TJ burst into the room, thrusting a radio into both of their faces and pointing.

Jesus's voice was speaking on the other end. "Hello? Jesus to someone in Alexandria. We have taken the Sanctuary. Over. I repeat, we have taken the Sanctuary."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The various teams radioed in their statuses. All had suffered heavy casualties, but all had prevailed. Ezekiel radioed in that he had taken three captives and they had told him the location of two other outposts that they hadn't known about. Everyone would have to band together to attack the remaining two outposts, but that could wait until tomorrow. Tonight, they could relax, at least a little.

The bodies of the Saviors were loaded into trucks and taken to the quarry that Rick had found months ago. They weren't burned or buried, they were simply dumped into the hole in a heap. Negan's body was thrown in last. Various people who he had wronged had taken their frustration out on it, kicking and shooting it a few more times, and there wasn't much left to dump into the hole.

Once Negan was officially gone, a tentative peace settled over Alexandria. No one dropped their guard completely, as there undoubtedly still were Saviors running around, but people had smiles on their faces, something that hadn't been seen in months. The children who were waiting at the rendezvous point had been brought home and reunited with the rest of the community. Most people were celebrating the victory, but still weary of the battle that would happen tomorrow.

To free up some space in the overcrowded infirmary, Michonne and Carl took Rick home in a wheelchair as Judith rode on Rick's lap. Judith smiled excitedly and Rick laughed as Carl zigzagged the wheelchair down the street. Michonne hung back, watching her family with a lump in her throat. She thought she might lose them all, but she was so grateful that she hadn't.

Michonne was too tired to cook a meal, and no one was very hungry anyway, so she allowed Carl and Judith to eat their favorite junk food for dinner, stale cookies. She had found a package of unopened Oreos a few days before, a rare find, and this was the perfect night to celebrate with a treat. Michonne brought her CD player downstairs and the family relaxed on the couch, snacking on the cookies and listening to music. When Judith was finished eating her face and shirt was covered in crumbled up Oreos, but as usual it didn't bother her one bit. She suddenly stood up, leaning on the couch for support, and began bouncing to the music.

Rick and Michonne quickly began cheering her on as Judith danced on her little legs. Carl hopped up and held Judith's hands, dancing along with her. Judith was so happy to be the center of attention she twisted and jumped as her brother and parents cheered her on. Not one to let the kids have all the fun, Michonne got to her feet when 'Party Rock Anthem' came on.

"I challenge you to a dance off" Michonne said to Carl, putting her hands on her hips.

"What?" Carl asked, totally taken by surprise.

"You, me, dance off, now." Michonne said, cracking her neck. "Or are you chicken?"

"So I heard you correctly the first time. I thought I heard wrong, but you _do_ want me to embarrass you in front of dad and Judy." Carl said smugly.

Michonne's mouth dropped open in surprise as Carl put Judy back on Rick's lap and he stretched as if he were about to run a long race.

"Hmmm, we'll see who's embarrassed when we're done. We take turns, two rounds, and your dad and Judy will be the judges." Michonne explained, twisting side to side as she spoke, stretching her back.

"Wait what?" Rick asked, "Why do I have to be the judge, I'm not taking sides."

"C'mon dad" Carl said, "don't be wimp. Judy will judge too, right Judy?" Carl asked.

Judy happily clapped her hands and babbled at her mother and brother.

"Ok, I'll go first" Michonne said. She restarted the song and began to rock to the beat with a thoughtful look on her face. She suddenly broke out into the running man, her feet effortlessly sliding across the floor as she stayed in one spot. Rick bust out laughing and Judy began to bounce in Rick's lap. Carl stood with his arms crossed and a serious look on his face as Michonne danced closer and closer to him. She did the running man in circles around Carl until he couldn't hold his laughter in anymore, and she stopped only when he had a big smile on his face.

"Yea that was alright mom" Carl grinned, "but I can do much better"

"Yea let's see Mr. Big Talker" Michonne replied.

Carl cracked his neck and his knuckles before waving his arms over his head like he was holding a lasso, and galloping around the living room. After he circled the entire couch, he did a mediocre version of the moonwalk, purposely backing into Michonne as she chuckled at Carl's silliness.

"Can you top that?" Carl asked.

"Hmm… you know, I think I can" Michonne said, pretending to be thoughtful.

She playfully waved her hands to clear Carl out of her way, and she began to do the butterfly, moving her arms and legs inwards and outwards like the wings of a butterfly.

"Yea, what do you know about that?" Michonne challenged.

"That was cute mom, but you're about to be destroyed" Carl said, shooing Michonne away the same way she did to him. Carl dropped to the floor and proceeded to do the worm, rhythmically pushing his body up from the floor and dropping back down again. Michonne's mouth dropped open and Rick and Judy clapped as the whole family watched him. When Carl was finished, Michonne clapped as well.

"Where did you learn to do that?" she asked, thoroughly impressed.

"I have my ways, maybe one day I'll teach you" Carl boasted. Michonne playfully mushed up Carl's hair, causing him to laugh and lean away from her.

"Ok, it's time to announce the winner" Rick said in an official sounding voice. "Judy will do the honors so I don't get attacked by the loser". Rick whispered something in Judy's ear and then put her on the floor. "Go on" Rick encouraged her. Judy toddled over to Carl and hugged his leg. "And the winner is Carl" Rick said. Michonne joined in with the clapping as Carl took his bows.

"And now, it's getting pretty late. I think we need to wrap this party up and go to bed." Rick said, giving his son a hint.

Carl rolled his eyes. "If you guys need some time alone, all you have to do is say it. I'm not a little kid y'know."

"Yes, but you're _my_ little kid" Rick said sarcastically. "Come here and give me a hug".

Carl rolled his eyes but walked over to Rick who was still in his wheelchair, and gave him a hug. "Good night hot wheels" Carl mumbled. Rick playfully swatted at Carl's head.

Carl then gave Michonne a hug. "Goodnight mom" he said, and then he whispered "Sorry about pushing you earlier. I didn't mean it."

Michonne nodded. "I know" she whispered back. Carl took Judy and carried her upstairs.

Michonne looked at Rick and smiled. "Really, where did he learn to do the worm? That was amazing."

"You were amazing too" Rick said, looking her up and down.

Michonne walked over to Rick's chair. "You sure you up for this? You can't even walk. We can wait to celebrate."

Rick grabbed Michonne's hands and pulled her closer. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "I wouldn't wait if I had been shot in the chest. There is nothing that will ever stop me from wanting you."

Rick struggled to stand from the wheelchair. Michonne helped him up and supported him as they made their way to the spare bedroom. She helped him sit down on the edge of the bed and she turned around to close the door. By the time she had turned back around to look at him, his shirt was already off.

"How did you do that so fast?" Michonne asked in disbelief.

"Come over here and see how fast I can get your shirt off too."

Michonne took her time walking back over to Rick, but as soon as she got into reach of his arms, he pulled her onto his lap so that her body was straddling his. He kissed her deeply, his tongue running over her teeth and massaging her tongue. He moaned into her mouth and she could feel him harden underneath her.

She rocked on top of him a few times, eliciting more moans from him, and the feel of him poking her through his jeans.

"So what's the best way to do this?" she asked nibbling on his neck, "I don't want to hurt you"

"There's so much I wanna do to you right now" Rick confessed, and then his voice got deeper and more husky "but what I really want is for you to ride me".

Michonne smiled against Rick's cheek. "Ok, how do you want me to ride you Rick?" she asked in a silky voice.

Rick knew she was playing with him, but he was up for talking dirty. He reached his arms around Michonne and placed both hands firmly on her ass cheeks, squeezing tightly. "I want you to ride me fast, and while you're riding me I want to hold on to your ass" he admitted, nuzzling his face into her neck.

"Mmm, that sounds good" Michonne replied. "I think I'd like that. So how 'bout you move further into that bed so I can take your clothes off."

Rick happily complied, carefully lifting his legs into the bed so as not to irritate his wound. Michonne slowly unzipped Rick's zipper, not hiding the fact that she was staring longingly at his dick. She slowly began to stroke him on top of his boxers, eliciting more moans from his lips. She moved his jeans down his legs, using the utmost care around his wound, but the movement of his jeans still caused Rick to suck in a breath in pain.

"You ok?" Michonne asked, looking up at him.

"Hell yea" Rick responded with a smile, and Michonne continued to undress him until he was naked. She then began to undress herself as he watched with glee.

"You're so beautiful" he said, looking at her in awe. His expression made her fall in love with him all over again. That fact that he still looked at her like she was the most wonderful thing in the world, after he knew who she was, what she'd done, what she was capable of doing. He loved her despite all of that, maybe even because of all of that.

"So are you" she responded, and she gently climbed on top of him, kissing him again. His hands rested on her back, and slowly moved around her body as she kissed him. His fingers moved down her sides, wrapping around to caress her breasts and fondle her nipples. They them moved down her belly, causing her lower regions to flutter with need, they then worked their ways down her thighs but then up again, finally curving around to her ass and staying there.

Rick thrust his body upwards, rubbing his hard dick on her thigh. "You feel that? That's how beautiful you are. That's how sexy you are. That's how much I want you and need you. Nobody is ever gonna take you away from me. Never ever again. I promise."

Michonne smiled as she rubbed herself against Rick's now swollen dick. "Are you ready?" she asked teasingly. He nodded enthusiastically.

"Say it" she demanded.

"I'm ready Michonne, I want you to ride me"

She leaned down and gave his lips a quick kiss before slowly lowering herself on to him. He immediately began to gyrate underneath her as she stayed still, allowing herself to adjust to him. "Is this ok?" she asked.

He responded by thrusting up into her and making her gasp. Excited, she began to rock back and forth on top of him. The two of them melded together, flesh on flesh, chest to chest. Rick couldn't get enough of her, kissing every part of her he could reach, licking her shoulder, her sternum, and then taking a breast into his mouth. Michonne rocked on top of Rick, feeling his body inside of hers was amazing. A few minutes in, they both were getting excited and Michonne wanted to give Rick more. She slowly pulled herself from him.

Rick opened his mouth to protest but Michonne quickly turned with her back to him and straddled him again. Rick grinned wildly as he looked at the view in front of him. The vision of her perfect ass in his face as she lowered herself onto his dick was something he would never forget. He nearly came right there.

"Oh my… oh God!" Rick groaned, digging his fingers into her waist as she moved on top of him. Michonne, carefully avoiding the bandage on Rick's leg, took up a rhythm as she bounced, waves of pleasure passing through her. She would slow the pace down and Rick would impatiently move her hips against him for her to speed up again. Her eyes were closed and her mouth was open, and each movement she made earned a grunt from Rick. "Michonne" he moaned, as he ran his fingers up and down her ass, caressing it's pillowy softness.

"Wanna see another dance move I saved just for you?" she asked, looking over her shoulder at Rick.

"Oh yes" Rick whispered, leaning back in anticipation.

Michonne winked and moved up higher off Rick so that she was on her hands and knees facing away from him. She opened her legs wide into a full split, and then slammed down hard on Rick's dick so that he dove deep into her.

"Shit!" Rick yelled out in surprise. Michonne continued bouncing on him while in a split, and with his position behind her, he could see every fine detail of what was happening.

"Why... am I... just... finding out... about this move... now?" Rick asked, barely able to get the words out.

"You like?" she asked, continuing her assault.

"I love. Please do that every time. That feels so good. But now, I want to see your face." He panted, gently turning her around so that she was facing him. "Your face is my favorite part of you, but the other parts, those are a close second."

Michonne leaned down, kissing Rick tenderly, and continued rocking, both of them close to the end.

"I told you once we take down Negan, I would have as many babies with you as you allow. I was wondering, do you wanna start?" Rick asked.

Michonne froze for a moment. "What, now?" she asked breathlessly.

"Yea, I mean this would be an opportune time" Rick said, playfully grinding beneath her.

"I… like right now?... I didn't…" Michonne started at a loss for words.

"If you don't want to it's ok, I'll pull out. I'm just asking. I'm letting you know, if you want to, I want to."

Michonne looked undecided, but as she stared down into Rick's eyes she knew that she wanted any children she had to be his, and now that Negan was gone they had a bright future. There were still battles to be won, but today, she could think about their future together.

She leaned down and kissed Rick, running her fingers down his face. She then gently continued grinding on him. "Ok. I'm ready when you are."

 **Author's note** **: I am finally done with this story! It's amazing how a one-shot turned into a 10 chapter fic, but I guess I just can't write a one-shot. I really hope you enjoyed this story, I worked really hard on it and got serious cases of writer's block, especially for this last chapter, it was killing me, so please write me a review to tell me what you think!**


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